Wrongful Imprisonment of Md Arman: IGP seeks stay on HC order for compensation to victim
The inspector general of police (IGP) has filed a petition with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court seeking stay on the High Court verdict that directed him (IGP) to give Tk 20 lakh as compensation to Md Arman, a technician at a Benarasi Palli in Mirpur, as police personnel have wrongly arrested him and kept him in jail for around five years instead of the original accused in a drug case.
The stay petition was submitted recently to the office concerned of the Appellate Division saying that the HC has ordered the IGP to give Tk 20 lakh to Arman without assessing the damage.
Besides, departmental action has been taken against the police officers who are responsible for wrongly arresting and keeping Arman in jail and therefore, the IGP is not liable for giving any compensation, Deputy Attorney General Amit Das Gupta told The Daily Star citing the IGP's petition.
He said the stay petition was placed before Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division Justice Md Nuruzzaman for hearing yesterday. The apex court judge, however, did not hold hearing on the petition yesterday, saying that the matter will be heard later on, DAG Amit Das Gupta added.
Meanwhile yesterday, the same court refused to stay the part of the HC directive that asked the IGP and DMP commissioner to withdraw four police officers from duty, who were working under Pallabi Police Station during the incident, from their present workplaces.
The four police officers are then OC Dadan Fakir, now inspector under DMP; then SI Md Nazrul Islam, now court inspector under DMP; SI Md Sirajul Islam Khan, now inspector at the Sports and Culture department under Police Headquarters, and Md Russell, now SI of Mirpur Model Police station, court sources said.
The Appellate Division judge passed "no order" on the petitions filed by the four police officers seeking stay on the HC verdict on them.
The apex court also asked them to file separate leave-to-appeal petitions with this court against the HC verdict after receiving its full text. Senior lawyer Munsurul Hoque Chowdhury appeared for the four police officers.
Following a writ petition filed by Law and Life Foundation, a rights organisation, the HC on December 31 last year, declared the arrest and detention of Arman illegal and contradictory to his fundamental and human rights, and asked the authorities concerned of the government to immediately release him from Dhaka central jail.
The HC also directed the IGP to give Tk 20 lakh as compensation to Md Arman in 30 days after receiving the copy of the verdict and ordered the IGP and DMP commissioner to withdraw the four police officers.
The IGP and DMP commissioner have been asked to submit separate reports to the HC by February 14, 2021.
The HC also ordered Police Bureau of Investigation to conduct an inquiry into the incident and submit a probe report by April 11, 2021.
Writ petitioner's lawyer Humayun Kabir Pallab said police reportedly arrested Arman in a drug case in January 2016 instead of the original accused named Shahabuddin Bihari.
Both their fathers' names are Md Yeasin. The detention of Arman is like that of jute mill worker Jaha Alam, who was released from jail following a HC directive, lawyer Pallab added.