Govt lawyer withdrawn for helping accused
An additional public prosecutor of Bogura’s Additional Sessions Judge Court-2 has been withdrawn on charges of making recommendtions to the court in favour of an absconding murder accused in exchange for financial benefits.
Abdul Matin, public prosecutor of Bogura District Judge Court, served a withdrawal notice on Additional Public Prosecutor Shahadat Hossain on Tuesday.
The notice said Shahadat on April 18 wrote to the judge to recall 12 prosecution witnesses of the murder case, although their statements and cross-examinations have already been recorded by the court.
Shahadat told the court that accused Sanaul Islam, who has been on the run for 15 years, would face an irreparable loss if the witnesses were not recalled. The court rejected his application and was displeased with him, according to the withdrawal notice.
It also mentioned that Shahadat did this in exchange for financial benefits from the accused. The image of the state, the government, and the judiciary was harmed due to this activity of the APP.
Matin in the notice also asked Shahadat to submit the case dockets to the PP’s office in the next seven days.
Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, Shahadat said, “I submitted a recall petition to the court as accused Sanaul Islam remained fugitive. I wanted to tell the court that if the witnesses were not recalled, the trial of the case would be hampered. But I mistakenly wrote that the accused would suffer an irreparable loss.”
He said he withdrew the petition early last month after realising that he made a mistake.
The lawyer, however, refuted the allegation of taking any financial benefit from the accused.
According to the case statement, Jobeda, 40, from Narchi Tarafdarpara village in Bogura’s Sariakandi upazila, was murdered in 2005. Her body was found in a septic tank near her home on August 19 that year.
The murder case was filed with the Sariakandi Police Station.
On April 22, 2006, police submitted the charge sheet in the case against seven accused. One of them, Jamal Uddin, told the court that Sanaul was involved in the murder, court sources said.
All the seven but Sanaul are now behind bars.
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