Tribunal sets Feb 24 for next hearing

A special tribunal in Dhaka has fixed February 24 for hearing of the Faisal Arefin Dipan murder case against eight members of banned militant outfit Ansar Al Islam.

Judge Majibur Rahman of Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal of Dhaka on Thursday set the date after receipt of the case was sent from the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka.

The tribunal also directed the jail authorities to produce six of the accused, now in jail, to be produced before it on the scheduled date.

On November 15 last year, investigating officer of the case, Assistant Commissioner of Detective Branch (DB) Fazlur Rahman, submitted charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court of Dhaka, where he listed 26 people as prosecution witnesses.

The six arrestees are killing squad leader Moinul Hasan Shamim alias Samir alias Imran, 24; trainer Abdus Sabur alias Samad alias Sujon alias Raju, 23; and top ABT operatives Khairul Islam alias Fahim alias Jishan, 24; Sheikh Abdullah, 27; Abu Siddiq Sohel, 34; and Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon, 25.

Apart from them, police claimed that sacked army major Syed Ziaul Haq, the military wing commander of the outfit, planned the killing. Zia and another suspect Akram Hossein alias Hasib are still on the run.

Faisal Arefin Dipan, 43, was the publisher of Jagriti Prokashani. He was hacked to death at his office in Dhaka's Shahbagh on October 31, 2015. His wife later filed the case with Shahbagh Police Station accusing unknown persons.

Dipan was stabbed twice in the head and once in the neck with a machete, according to the autopsy report.