47 fishermen jailed, 2 fined for netting hilsa

Mobile courts in separate drives yesterday sentenced 47 fishermen to different terms of imprisonment and seized around 308 kilograms of hilsa in Faridpur and Chandpur for defying a 22-day ban on netting the fish till October 28.

Our Faridpur correspondent reported that at least 34 fishermen were jailed by two separate mobile courts on charge of defying the ongoing ban on hilsa fishing in Sadar and Sadarpur upazilas of the district.

One of the courts also fined two other fishermen for defying the ban in Sadarpur upazila.

A court led by Executive Magistrate Israt Jahan sent seven fishermen to 15 days imprisonment under Protection and Conservation of Fish Act, 1950.

The court also sized 50 thousand metres of fishing nets and 60 kilograms of the popular fish from different places of the Padma river in Sadar upazila.

Meanwhile, another court led by Executive Magistrate Mohammad Kamrul Hasan sentenced 27 fishermen to different terms in Sadarpur upazila.

The court also fined two other fishermen Tk 5,000 each and seized 3,000 metres of current nets with 90 kilograms of hilsa from different areas in Padma and Arial Kha rivers.

Away in Chandpur, mobile courts in separate drives detained 13 fishermen and sentenced them to different terms of imprisonment, reports our correspondent.

During the drive, the court also seized 158 kilograms of mother hilsa from the convicts.

District Fisheries Officer Mohammad Asadul Baki said mobile courts conducted nine drives at different points in the  Meghna river from Monday evening till yesterday and detained 13 fishermen for defying the ban.

The judges of the courts later awarded  one year imprisonment to nine fisherment, one month to another and 15 days' imprisonment to three others.

The convicts include Jewel, 35, Nasir Miah, 30, Ariful Islam, 28, Hazrat Ali, 35, Md Hossain, 26, Yousuf Majhi, 26, Md Quddus, 25, Md Saiful, 27, Md Jamal, 30.