Dhaka, Jul 16 (UNB) – The High Court on Tuesday granted a six-week anticipatory bail to former Rajuk chief KM Harun in a case filed over the forgery of Banani’s FR Tower building’s design.

The court also ordered former Rajuk building inspector Md Awrangazeb Siddique and Assistant Authorised Officer Md Nazrul Islam to surrender before the subordinate court within six weeks.

The bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice KM Hafizul Alam passed the order.

Advocate AM Amin Uddin stood for Harun, while Deputy Attorney General KM Amin Uddin represented the state and Md Khurshid Alam represented the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

On June 26, ACC filed two separate cases against 23 people, including two former Rajuk chairmen, over the illegal construction of eight floors after design forgery. 

A devastating fire broke out on the fifth floor of the 22-storey building on March 28, killing more than two dozen people injuring at least 70 others.

Khulna, July 16 (UNB) – A tribunal here on Tuesday convicted five people and sentenced them to death for killing a female private bank official after gang-rape and her father in 2015.

The convicts are Saiful Islam Pitil, 30, Shariful, 27, Mohamamd Liton, 28, Abu Syed, 25, and Azizur Rahman Palash, 26, of Labanchhara in the city. Of them, Shariful was tried in absentia.

According to the prosecution, the convicts used to stalk Parvin Sultana, 29, a former official of a private bank and daughter of Elias Ali of Buro Moulvir Darga in the city, on her way to home from the bank.

On September 18, 2015, the convicts swooped on the house of Parvin, breaking open the door and strangulated Elias to death. Later, they entered the room of Parvin and killed her after violating her in turns.

They also looted valuables from the house and dumped the bodies into the septic tank of the house before leaving.

Rezaul Alam Chowdhury, brother of the victim, filed two cases with Labanchhara Police Station on September 19.

Police submitted chargesheet against five people in 2016 in the two cases. 

After examining records and 22 witnesses, Judge of Khulna Woman and Child Repression Prevention Tribunal-3 Mohammad Mohiduzzaman handed down the verdict.

Barguna, July 16 (UNB) – Police interrogated Aysha Siddika Minni on Tuesday morning over the murder of her husband Rifat Sharif who was hacked to death in broad daylight in the district town on June 26.

A police team went to Minni’s house near Barguna Police Lines around 9:45am and took her to the SP office, said witnesses. She was later taken to the police lines for interrogation.

District police chief Maruf Hossain said Minni was brought to his office to record her deposition as a witness in the murder case in presence of investigation officer Md Humayun Kabir.

Police also sought Minni’s cooperation to identify the murderers.

The new development came after Rifat’s father Dulal Sharif and locals demanded Minni’s arrest alleging that she had a part in the murder of her husband.

At a press conference at Barguna Press Club on Saturday night, Dulal Sharif demanded the arrest of his daughter-in-law and investigate whether she had colluded with the killers.

He alleged that Minni concealed the matter that she was previously married to Sabbir Ahmed alias Nayon Bond, the prime accused of the Rifat murder case. Nayon was killed in a reported gunfight with police on July 2. Minni reportedly used to frequent Nayon’s house.

Besides, instead of trying to protect Rifat on the day, she was busy with herself and even ‘helped the killers’, alleged Dulal. He raised a 10-point allegation against Minni who has been made the first witness in the case.

Locals formed a human a human chain on the Barguna Press Club premises on Sunday morning demanding Minni’s arrest.

Shortly after the human chain, Minni claimed that propaganda was being spread against her to protect the murderers and called Dulal sick and imbalanced.

She alleged that a group has been out to implicate her in the case by misguiding her father-in-law so that the accused get released.

Minni rejected the claim that she had previously married Nayon. “Why hadn’t Nayon stood in my way when I married Rifat if I had earlier married him?”

Police have so far arrested 13 people in connection with the Rifat murder. Seven of them have confessed to their involvement in the murder.

The incident, caught on surveillance camera, went viral on social media. It showed criminals hacking Rifat in front of Barguna Govt College while his wife Minni was trying to save him.

Rifat was sent to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in Barishal where he died. 

Dulal Sharif later filed a case against 12 people.

Dhaka, July 15 (UNB) - The Appellate Division has ordered instant release of Azmat Ali, a former schoolteacher from Sarishabari upazila of Jamalpur, who was in jail for 10 years even after his release on presidential clemency in a murder case.

The six-member Appellate Division bench, led by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, delivered the order on June 27 after hearing a petition seeking review of its earlier verdict.

However, journalists came to know about the matter on Monday.

The court also described the order sending Azmat to jail as ‘illogical and unfortunate’.
 
Azmat, a former assistant teacher of Bhengula High School at Ghoramara in Gopalpur upazila of Tangail and resident of Tarakandi village in Sarishabari, had been in jail since he was rearrested in the murder case in 2009 as the matter of presidential clemency was kept out of court’s notice.

The matter came to light after a report on the imprisonment of the former schoolteacher even after presidential clemency was published in a nation daily on October 25, 2018.

Later, a review petition was filed with the Appellate Division with the help of Supreme Court Legal Aid Committee. 

Rezaul Karim, son of Kalim Uddin of Tarakandi, was killed in a clash over land dispute on April 1, 1987. A murder case was filed against Azmat in this connection. 

Jamalpur District and Sessions Judge awarded him life imprisonment on March 8, 1989. Later, he appealed to the High Court as well as sought presidential clemency. 

The President granted his appeal and pardoned him in 1991.  He also released from jail on August 21, 1996.

On March 2, 2005, the High Court also acquitted him.   

However, the state filed an appeal with the SC challenging the HC verdict on February 20, 2008 when the court ordered him to appear before the trial court. 

Police arrested Azmat from his house on October 29, 2009 and since then he had been in jail.

On August 11, 2010, the Appellate Division overturned the HC judgment acquitting Azmat and upheld lower court’s verdict sentencing him to life imprisonment as it was not informed about the presidential clemency. 
 

Dhaka, July 15 (UNB) – The High Court on Monday directed Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, special assistant to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, to surrender within the next two weeks before the lower court in a case filed for obstructing law enforcers from discharging their duties.

The HC bench of Justice Jahangir Hossain and Justice Md Riaz Uddin Khan passed the order after Shimul Biswas sought bail in the case. He filed the bail application on July 7.
  
Senior lawyer Khandakar Mahbub Hossain and Advocate Masud Rana stood for Shimul Biswas and Deputy Attorney General Jahid Sarwar Kajal represented the state.

The case was filed on November 16, 2017 with Shahbagh Police Station on charge of obstructing the law enforcers from discharging their duties while the BNP chairperson was on her way to a Dhaka court in a case filed against her.

Advocate Masud Rana said the name of Shimul Biswas was included in the charge-sheet of the case on November 20, 2018.