Salam Pintu remanded again

BNP leader and former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu admitted that he had been aware of all the grenade attacks that were plotted and executed across the country, officials of Criminal Investigation Department said.

He made the statement to the CID interrogators during a five-day remand in connection with the bomb attack on Narayanganj AL office in 2001, they said.

CID took him on a fresh three-day remand yesterday.

Pintu admitted that he knew beforehand all details of the bomb attacks including the attacks on Narayanganj AL office on June 16 in 2001 and on Awami League rally on August 21 in 2004, the CID officials told the chief judicial magistrate seeking a fresh remand for Pintu.

Additional Superintendent of Police and in-charge of Narayanganj CID camp office Yusuf Ali Mollah had sought a seven-day remand for extracting more information from Pintu about the attacks and other persons behind the heinous acts.

Chief Judicial Magistrate of Narayanganj Arifur Rahman granted the three-day remand.

Earlier, defence counsel advocate Abdul Bari Bhuiyan prayed for Pintu's bail on ground of treatment but the court denied the bail prayer.

On October 10, Pintu was shown arrested by the CID in connection with the bomb attack on Narayanganj AL office. He was taken on the five-day remand on November 15.

In the meantime, Harkat-ul Jihad al Islami (Huji) leader Mufti Abdul Hannan and Swechchhasebak League leader Shahadat Ullah Jewel were remanded in connection with the Narayanganj bomb attack.

In a confessional statement, Jewel admitted his involvement in the attack on June 16 in 2001 that left 20 people dead and over 100 others injured

Pintu's brother Moulana Tajuddin is a leader of Pakistan based Lashkar-e-Taiba outfit who supplied grenades used in the August 21 attacks that killed 24 people and injured 300 others.