81 Vietnam-returnee Bangladeshis arrested, sent to jail

Eighty-one Bangladeshis, who had been stranded in Vietnam and returned home by a chartered flight two weeks ago, were arrested and sent to jail today, after completion of a 14-day quarantine.

They were arrested under section 54 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) for "being involved in various crimes in Vietnam", said Asmaul Husna, a sub-inspector of Turag Police Station.

Nurul Muttakin, officer-in-charge of Turag Police Station, said they arrested 83 Bangladeshi returnees in total. Of them, 81 returned from Vietnam while two from Qatar.

Metropolitan Magistrate Satyabrata Sikder sent the 83 arrestees to jail around 2:00pm after Turag Police Station Sub-inspector Md Anwarul Islam produced them before him with a forwarding report, our court correspondent reports.

In the report, SI Anwarul said that the arrestees, including the two from Qatar, were earlier convicted in the countries and sentenced to different terms for their involvement in criminal activities.

When the coronavirus outbreak surged worldwide, their sentences were commuted and they were sent back to Bangladesh, according to the report.

"Their criminal activities have tarnished the country's image and also put a negative impact in the labour industry," it said.

"After returning to Bangladesh, they divided into different groups during their quarantine and were planning subversive activities against the government," the report added.

After getting information about their activities here, Turag police informed the higher authorities to take legal action against them.

Today, Turag police showed them arrested under CrPC's section 54 and produced them before the court with an appeal to send them to jail.

SI Anwarul, also investigation officer of the case, prayed to the court to keep them in jail until the case investigation is completed.

Earlier on August 18, a flight of US-Bangla carried 112 Bangladeshis including 107 migrants to Dhaka from Vietnam.

They were later taken to Diabari isolation centre for a mandatory 14-day quarantine.

Before sending them back home, the authorities of Vietnam wrote to Bangladesh counterparts to take necessary steps about them, police said.

The move of bringing back the stranded Bangladeshis came after many of them who faced exploitation in Vietnam travelled from Ho Chi Min City to the capital Hanoi since early July and protested against their Vietnamese employers and Bangladeshi brokers.

They demanded immediate repatriation. However, as international flights were suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, there was no way to repatriate them immediately.

One of the returnees who was released, however, said, "Those who protested in front of Bangladesh Embassy in Vietnam for their problems and went on Facebook live, describing their ordeal, were arrested. We did not participate in the protest and that's why the authorities released us."

"We are all victims. They should be released," he said.