Dhaka court remands two suspects in blogger Niloy murder case for eight days

A Dhaka court has remanded two persons, arrested for their suspected involvement in the murder of blogger Niladri Chatterjee Niloy, in police custody for eight days.

Metropolitan Magistrate Molla Saiful Islam allowed police to interrogate Sad Al Nahin and Masud Rana after they were produced in his court on Friday afternoon.

Detective Branch Inspector Sheikh Mahbubur Rahman sought 10-day remand for each of them.

Rahman is the investigation officer of the murder case filed by Niloy’s wife Asha Moni.

The Court Police General Recording Officer, Sub-Inspector Deepak Dey, during the hearing said they had proof of Nahin and Rana’s involvement in the blogger’s murder.

“They need to be questioned to find out who else were involved and recover the weapons used in the murder.”

No lawyer represented the two in court on Friday and no bail plea was submitted on their behalf.

Nahin also told the judge that he had nothing to say when Magistrate Islam asked.

The judge granted police eight days in remand for each of them after the hearing, Dey told bdnews24.com.

Police said State Minister for Labour and Employment Mujibul Haque Chunnu’s nephew Nahin was held at Uttara and Rana at Mirpur’s Kalshi on Thursday.

But Nahin’s family claims he was whisked away from their Uttara residence by some people, who identified themselves as detective police, five days ago.

“Both of them are members of Ansarullah Bangla Team,” Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Additional Deputy Commissioner SM Jahangir Alam Sarker told bdnews24.com before Friday’s hearing.

“They were also accused in another case over an attempt to murder blogger Asif Mohiuddin. The duo has been under the detectives’ watch since they got out of jail on bail,” he said.

The police official said they hoped to get some information from them regarding Niloy’s murder during interrogation.

Blogger Niloy was hacked to death at his flat at east Gorhan on Aug 7.

His wife and sister-in-law, who were inside the home at the time, told both police and media that four youths took part in the killing.

Police are yet to confirm whether Nahin and Rana were among those four.

When asked, DB Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mahbubul Alam told bdnews24.com: “We also have some information. We will crosscheck them with whatever we get from these two during questioning.”

DB’s Additional DC Md Nurunnabi said there was also a complaint against Rana over threatening to kill another blogger.

Nahin’s father Nazrul Haque is a schoolteacher from Kishoreganj. He is also the former chairman of Dahia Union under Tarhail Upazila in the same district.

Jatiya Party leader Chunnu is his older brother.

A student of BBA at the Dhaka University, Nahin was arrested earlier over the attempt on the life of Asif Mohiuddin two years ago.

He was freed on bail around a year ago.

DB Inspector Nibaran Chandra Barman, the investigation officer in that case, told bdnews24.com: “Nahin had admitted in court that he was an active member of Ansaruallah Bangla Team.

“He had also confessed that some others and he tried to kill blogger Asif Mohiuddin.”

Police claim banned Islamic outfit Ansarullah was behind all the attacks on writers, bloggers and online activists.

All those slain were also active supporters of Ganajagaran Mancha that is demanding maximum penalty for war crimes convicts and outlawing of religion-based politics.

Around a month after the attack on Mohiuddin at Uttara, blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider was killed near his home at Mirpur’s Kalshi in February 2013.

After that, secular bloggers Avijit Roy, Oyasiqur Rahman Babu, and Ananta Bijoy Das were hacked to death on the street in a span of six months.