Dhaka, Sep 24 (IANS) A Bangladesh court on Wednesday ordered a five-day remand for former Food Minister Qamrul Islam in connection with a murder case linked to last year’s July demonstrations, local media reported.
Additionally, the court showed former Awami League MP Mohammad Solaiman Salim as ‘arrested’ in a separate murder case during the same protests.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Sadekur Rahman issued the order after hearing petitions from both police and defence lawyers.
Reports suggest that the investigating officer, Mainul Islam Khan Pulok, of Shahbagh Police Station, sought a 10-day remand for Qamrul and submitted an application to show Salim as ‘arrested’ in the murder case.
During the hearing, Qamrul’s lawyer, Morshed Hossain Shahin, opposed the remand plea.
“He is a freedom fighter and 76 years old. He suffers from various illnesses, and even minor issues with food can cause poisoning. This is his 23rd case. In such circumstances, he is not in a condition to be remanded. He is also suffering from cancer, and something serious could happen to him,” Bangladesh’s leading newspaper, The Business Standard, quoted Shahin as saying.
Shahin argued that his client had been suffering due to repeated court appearances.
“He should be interrogated at the jail gate. Moreover, he was not the MP of the area in question. How can the same person be present in different areas at the same time?” the lawyer claimed.
The police arrested Qamrul on November 18 last year in Dhaka’s Uttara. He faces multiple charges, including the murder of a jute trader, Md. Monir in Shahbagh during last year’s July protests.
On the other hand, Salim was taken into custody on November 14, 2024, in the Gulshan area of the capital on charges of separate murder cases linked to the same protest.
In a separate development, on Wednesday, Bangladeshi police arrested Ajay Kar Khokon, Awami League leader and former general secretary of the party’s student wing Chhatra League.
Citing a police source, Bangladesh’s leading newspaper Jugantor reported that he was arrested on charges of organising a procession for the Awami League.
These latest developments come amid the ongoing crackdown on Awami League leaders, along with the officials associated with the party, under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government.
Analysts reckon the developments as a major political vendetta being pursued by the Yunus regime, as several cases were filed against the former Prime Minister Hasina, her party members, and the working officials during her tenure on frivolous grounds immediately following her ouster in August 2024.
–IANS
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