SC upholds bail of two former police chiefs

Former inspectors general of police (IGP) Shahudul Haque and Ashraful Huda's six months' bail, granted by the High Court (HC) in August 21 grenade attack case, was yesterday upheld by the Supreme Court (SC).

Both Shahudul and Ashraful had been convicted and sentenced to two years' imprisonment each in two charges of the case.       

After the HC granted them bail on January 21, Advocate Md Arshadur Rauf, a lawyer for both Shahudul and Ashraful, had told this correspondent that the HC granted bail to both his clients as they already served more than 14 months of their jailtime.

Yesterday, the chamber judge of the SC Appellate Division, Justice Md Nuruzzaman, passed “no order” on two separate petitions filed by the government, seeking a stay on the bail orders by HC.

Deputy Attorney General Masud Hasan Chowdhury Parag told The Daily Star that the “no order” by the SC chamber judge means that the bail orders granted to both Shahudul and Ashraful by the HC will remain in force.

The duo can now be released from jail, unless they are arrested in any other case, he also said.

After Shahudul and Ashraful filed appeals against the lower court's verdict against them in the August 21 grenade attack case, the HC granted six months' bail to each of them on January 21.

On October 10 last year, a Dhaka court sentenced 19 persons to death and 19 others to life imprisonment in connection with the case for killing at least 24 people and injuring around 300 others by launching a grenade attack on an Awami League rally in the capital on August 21, 2004.

Shahudul and Ashraful were among 11 others who were sentenced to different terms of imprisonment.

Sheikh Hasina, the then opposition leader in parliament, narrowly escaped the attack with an ear injury. Attorney General Mahbubey Alam represented the government yesterday.