Land grabbing: Sylhet industrialist Ragib Ali gets 14yrs’ jail

A Sylhet court today jailed industrialist Ragib Ali for 14 years and sentenced different terms of imprisonment to his son, daughter and two others in a case filed for forging legal papers and grabbing the endowed land of Tarapur Tea Estate in Sylhet.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Saifuzzaman Hiru passed the order in presence of Ragib and his son Abdul Hye while his daughter Rojina Kadir and son-in-law Abdul Kadir were tried in absentia, our Sylhet correspondent reports quoting Additional Public Prosecutor Mahfuzur Rahman.

Also read: Forging Land Documents: Ragib, son get 14-yr jail terms

Two other accused -- Dewan Mostak and Pankaj Kumar Gupta -- were also present when the court delivered the verdict.

Earlier on February 2, Ragib was sentenced to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment while his son, daughter, son-in-law and a relative Dewan Mostak Majid were handed 16 years’ rigorous imprisonment in another land grabbing case.

Defence lawyer Abdul Mukit Api, told reporters that they will go to the High Court challenging the lower court verdict.

Ragib was sent to jail on November 24 last year after he was arrested by Indian immigration police.

In 1990, Ragib started grabbing the land of the estate after forcing its legal Shebayet (caretaker) Pankaj Kumar Gupta to leave the country, alleged Pankaj.

Ragib built a hospital and also sold 337 plots and established some other structures on 422.96 acres of the estate land.