Bhuiyan, Shamsul sent to prison; Nizami held; Anwar absconding

From left: Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, MK Anwar and M Shamsul Islam

Police last night arrested Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami at his Moghbazar residence hours after BNP leaders Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and M Shamsul Islam were sent to jail on surrender to a Dhaka court.
Police also raided the Elephant Road residence of former minister and BNP leader MK Anwar at about 10:00pm but did not find him there.
Gulshan police said they went to the residences of former ministers M Saifur Rahman and Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury just to maintain formalities since they knew the two are now in abroad.
Earlier on Thursday, the court issued warrants for their arrest in the Gatco graft case.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Atiqul Islam went to Nizami's Green Valley apartment at around 9:45pm and arrested him after about one and a half hours.
Earlier, former LGRD minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and former land minister M Shamsul Islam were sent to jail shortly after they surrendered to a Dhaka court yesterday afternoon.
MK Anwar and Motiur Rahman Nizami--whose names are also in the charge sheet of the case, were desperately trying to avoid arrest by getting bail from the higher court.
Mannan Bhuiyan and Shamsul Islam, who belong to the BNP faction led by Khandaker Delwar Hossain, arrived at the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court in about an hour's interval, four days after the arrest warrants against them had been issued.
Bhuiyan, who was the longest serving secretary general of the BNP but was expelled by party chief Khaleda Zia on grounds of his "controversial" role, was the first to be put behind bars.
His lawyers advocates Golam Mostafa Khan and Iqbal Hossain appeared before the court at about 3:25pm after Bhuiyan along with party followers and admirers went to the court from his Gulshan residence.
The lawyers filed two petitions--one for taking their client into jail custody and another for providing him with division in jail.
In the petitions, the lawyers argued that the Supreme Court (SC) had earlier given a judgment saying the lower courts could not grant bail in connection with cases filed under the Emergency Power Rules (EPR). The Gatco graft case is filed under the EPR and the lower courts could not entertain the bail petition.
On the petition for division, Public Prosecutor (PP) Ehsanul Haq Samaji told the court that the accused would get division as per law.
After hearing both the sides, Judge Mohammad Azizul Haq ordered to send Bhuiyan to jail and sent the petition for division to the authorities concerned for taking necessary steps as per law.
After a while, Bhuiyan was taken to Dhaka Central Jail by a prison van.
After about an hour, Shamsul Islam along with his lawyers advocates Masud Ahmed Talukder and Sanaullah Miah appeared before the same court.
The lawyers submitted three petitions--one for bail, another for providing their client with division in jail and another for his treatment in jail.
They told the court that they appeared before it seeking bail for Shamsul Islam as the High Court (HC) did not earlier entertain a petition for anticipatory bail.
The PP opposed the bail petition, saying the accused would be in jail custody as there is no provision for giving bail in a case filed under the EPR. The petitioner would be provided with division and treatment in jail as per law, he said.
The court ordered to send the accused to jail and sent the matter related to division to the authorities concerned for legal consideration. The court also directed the jail authorities to arrange proper treatment for the accused, if necessary.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of prisons Maj Shamsul Haider Siddiqui received the two accused at jail gate.
Mannan Bhuiyan was kept in the Champakoli cell while Shamsul Islam in one near the jail hospital.
A senior jail official told The Daily Star last night that as per the jail code both Bhuiyan and Shamsul would enjoy divisions.
With the two, a total of 49 prisoners with division facilities are now staying at Dhaka Central Jail.
There was a controversy centring Bhuiyan as many quarters, especially his rival group in BNP, have been alleging that corruption was rife in the LGRD ministry when he was its minister but he enjoyed the blessings of the caretaker government.
A brief brawl occurred between the supporters of Bhuiyan and a group of lawyers on the court premises yesterday when a lawyer hurled abusive words at him.
Although a chase and counter-chase ensued between the two groups, the law enforcers deployed at the court remained silent.
Earlier in the morning, the HC rejected a bail prayer of Nizami. Later, the Jamaat ameer filed a petition with the SC to stay the HC order.
Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division Justice MA Matin referred the matter to the chief justice for taking decision on it.
Nizami's counsel barrister Abdur Razzak told reporters that hearing of the petition might be held before the full bench of the Appellate Division on May 20.
Jamaat meanwhile announced a four-day programme, which includes fasting and feeding the destitute across the country, to protest the arrest of Nizami.
"Fasting will be observed on May 22-23 while destitute will be fed on May 24-25 to seek divine will to protect the nation from conspiracy and repression," Jamaat Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed said at a press conference at the party office yesterday.
The HC also refused to entertain a petition filed jointly by Shamsul Islam and MK Anwar seeking anticipatory bail in the Gatco graft case.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on May 15 issued arrest warrants against 12 "absconding" accused in the Gatco case. The accused include former ministers M Saifur Rahman, Mannan Bhuiyan, Nizami, MK Anwar, Shamsul Islam and Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury.
Saifur, who was leading the pro-reform faction of BNP, is now in Singapore while Amir Khasru has been absconding since the army-led joint forces launched its crackdown on corruption suspects.
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and her younger son Arafat Rahman Koko have already been detained in connection with the case on September 3 last year, immediately after filing of the case.
The other absconding accused are former shipping secretary Zulfikar Haider Chowdhury, Gatco directors AKM Musa Kajol, Ehsan Yusuf, Shahjahan M Hasib, former member of Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) AK Rashid Uddin Ahmed and former shipping minister and late BNP leader Col (retd) Akbar Hossain's wife Jahanara Ansar.
The arrestees in the case are former health minister Dr Khondaker Mosharraf Hossain, former state minister for energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former CPA chief finance and accounts officer Ahmed Abul Qashem, former CPA chairman Commodore (retd) Zulfiqur Ali, former CPA chairman AMM Shahadat Hossain, former CPA directors AM Sanwar Hossain, Luthful Kabir, Gatco Managing Director Syed Galib Ahmed, Gatco Director Syed Tanvir Ahmed, and Akbar's son Ismail Hossain Simon.
The ACC pressed charges against Khaleda and 23 others on May 13 for committing the offences.