Court sends BNP acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul to jail

A Dhaka court has sent BNP acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir to jail by rejecting his bail plea as well as a petition for his remand.

The Judge of Dhaka’s Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court, Tareque Moinul Islam Bhuyia, on Wednesday heard the petitions in a new case over arson attacks.

The order says police will be able to question him at the jail gates over the next 10 working days if needed.

Police sought the BNP leader’s 10-day remand in the case filed with the Paltan Police Station.

Abdullah Abu argued for the state, while Fakhrul’s lawyers Sanaullah Mia and Masud Ahmed Talukder appealed for his bail.

They said the BNP leader was ill. He was suffering from diabetes, heart problems, back pain, and other ailments, they said.

They also claimed police had not presented all the papers related to the seven cases he is facing. The court could hear the petition on his remand later, they argued.

On the other hand, Abu maintained that all the required documents had been submitted to the court.

Fakhrul was arrested at the National Press Club on Tuesday, minutes after he emerged from a press briefing on his party’s continued anti-government protests. He was taken to the court from the police’s Detective Branch office around 3:30pm on Wednesday.

Police sought the BNP leader’s remand in one of the two cases filed over the torching vehicles on Sunday, the eve of the first anniversary of the last general elections.

Fakhrul is facing over 50 cases filed over clashes and arson attacks. He was in jail for months last year.