Magistrate
oversteps to grant bail
A
magistrate in Dhaka has granted bail to four accused in a case under
the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act beyond jurisdiction.
Section 19 of the act says only tribunals, set up to deal with such
cases, have the authority to grant bail to the accused. Jahangir Alam,
magistrate of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's (CMM) Court, ignoring
the provision, allowed bails to four accused who were arrested on 3
December for their suspected roles in the rape and killing of a maid.
Lawyers for the accused filed a writ petition for bail with the High
Court (HC) on December 15 that said in its order the petitioners 'may
... move the appropriate criminal court for bail' and directed the magistrate
to dispose of the petition in line with the law. After the HC order,
the lawyers for the accused submitted a bail petition on 20 December
to the CMM's court, which was opposed by the prosecution, and the magistrate
-- hearing both sides -- granted the accused an ad-interim bail on a
bond of Tk 10,000 with two guarantors each. -Daily Star, 25 December.
Murder
case against policemen
A murder case was filed with the Court of Chief Metropolitan
Magistrate (CMM), Dhaka accusing three police personnel of Sabujbagh
Police Station, Dhaka of torturing a boy to death in custody on 12 December.
The accused are sub-inspectors (SIs) Mohammad Emdad, Mohammad Shaheed
and Mohammad Riaz. Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Emdadul Haq took
the case into cognisance following a hearing and asked the Dhaka Metropolitan
Police (DMP) commissioner to appoint an investigation officer from the
Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of police to probe the matter.
Mohammad Hamiduzzaman Ujjal, vice-president of ward No. 29 unit of BNP
and brother of victim Mahbubul Alam Roni, filed the case. He alleged
that Emdad and Shaheed picked up Roni and three on 4 December. They
took them to Sabujbagh Police Station at about 9:00pm. Emdad and Shaheed
tortured Roni with electric shocks that left him seriously injured.
Police implicated Rony in a criminal case the next day and produced
him before the CMM's Court with a prayer for a five-day remand. But
the court cancelled the prayer on ground of Rony's illness and sent
him to Dhaka Central Jail. When Rony's condition deteriorated, he was
shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital on December 12 where doctors
declared him dead. Police, of course, refuted the allegations. -Prothom
Alo, 25 December
Singapore
ship sued
Bangladesh Navy has filed a damage suit against Singapore flag
carrier MV Eagle Strength for damaging its ships at the outer anchorage
on September 21. The case was filed with Admiralty Division of the High
Court on the basis of inquiry reports that held the Singapore vessel
responsible for the damage of 18 ships of Bangladesh Navy. The court
ordered for seizure of MV Eagle Strength. The Court also set 4 January
for hearing of the case. The Navy claimed a compensation of Tk 200 crore
for the damage to its ships in an accident that also left 16 Navy personnel
injured. Soon after the incident the Port and Navy authorities had formed
separate inquiry committees that found MV Eagle Strength responsible
for the damage to the Navy ships. -Ajker Kagoj, 22 December
Twin
Tower victims get compensation
Three Bangladeshi families, who suffered from the September 11, 2001
terrorists' attack on Twin Tower of World Trade Center have received
a total compensation of Taka 12.24 lakh from American Red Cross Society.
A total of six Bangladeshi citizens were killed in the Twin Tower incident.
Of them three victims used to regularly send money to their Bangladeshi
family members. The American Red Cross Society gave this amount as compensation
to the victims' family members through Bangladesh Red Crescent Society.
Society's Vice-Chairman Dr Gazi Abdul Haq handed over the cheques for
Tk 12.24 lakh to the family members of the three victims. -Prothom
Alo, 22 December.
Murder
case against policemen
A murder case has been filed with the Court of Chief Metropolitan
Magistrate (CMM), Dhaka accusing three police personnel of Sabujbagh
Police Station, Dhaka of torturing a boy to death in custody on 12 December.
The accused are sub-inspectors (SIs) Mohammad Emdad, Mohammad Shaheed
and Mohammad Riaz. Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Emdadul Haq took
the case into cognisance and asked the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP)
commissioner to appoint an investigation officer from the Criminal Investigation
Department (CID) of police to probe the matter. Brother of the victim,
filed the case. He alleged that Emdad and Shaheed picked up Roni and
three on 4 December. They took them to Sabujbagh Police Station. Emdad
and Shaheed tortured Roni with electric shocks that left him seriously
injured. Police implicated Rony in a criminal case the next day and
produced him before the CMM's Court with a prayer for a five-day remand.
But the court cancelled the prayer and sent him to Dhaka Central Jail.
When Rony's condition deteriorated, he was shifted to Dhaka Medical
College Hospital on 12 December where doctors declared him dead. -Prothom
Alo, 25 December
HC
asks for list of undertrial prisoners
The High Court has asked the government to submit by January 4 a list
of under-trial prisoners, who have spent five years or more at the Dhaka
Central Jail. The vacation bench of Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain also
asked the government to submit particulars, including present status,
of the cases related to under-trial prisoners. The order came on a writ
petition, filed by the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST)
following a news published in the Daily Star that as many as 155 under-trial
prisoners have spent five years or more at the central jail. The cases
against them involve charges of rape, murder, robbery, abduction, smuggling
and possession of illegal firearms and explosives. -Law Desk, 25
December.
Certificate
case against farmers
Five commercial banks and the Bangladesh Rural Development Board sued
6,501 agricultural loan defaulters in Bogra to realise Tk 12 crore and
14 lakh. The farmers of the district failed to repay their loans to
Rupali, Sonali, Janata, Agrani, and Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank and
the rural development board. The loans were distributed for cultivation
of paddy, wheat, vegetable, for rearing cattle and fish farming. The
cases were filed with the upazila certificate court as the total amount
of individual loans including interest did not exceed Tk 50,000. The
cases were filed against the farmers as they failed to repay the loans
in six months after the dates they were scheduled to repay the loans.
-New Age, 23 December
