Sheema Oxygen director remanded in police custody after blast

Parvez Uddin Shantu was arrested in connection with a deadly blast at the company's Sitakunda plant

Police have secured a court order to interrogate Parvez Uddin Shantu, a director of Sheema Oxygen Limited, in their custody following his arrest in connection with a deadly blast at the company's plant in Chattogram's Sitakunda.

Judicial Magistrate Nazmun Nahar issued the remand order after hearing the police petition on Wednesday.

Police sought to remand Parvez for seven days, but the court granted a single day after hearing the plea, Chattogram District Court Inspector Zakir Hossain Mahmud confirmed.

Police arrested Parvez on Tuesday after a probe into the blast found negligence on the factory management's part.

Parvez is one of the company's directors, along with his two brothers, Mamun Uddin, the managing director of the parent company Sheema Group, and Ashraf Uddin Bappi, another director.

The three brothers were accused in a case filed by the relative of a victim of the explosion that tore through the facility on Mar 4, leaving at least seven people dead and around 25 others injured.

The plaintiff, Rokeya Begum, the widow of Abdul Quader who died in the blast, accused 16 people, including the owners, of negligence leading to the fatal blast.

Last week, the company agreed to pay Tk 1 million each in compensation to the families of those killed by the explosion.

The two workers who lost their legs and eyes will receive Tk 500,000 each in damages. Other injured workers will receive Tk 200,000 each to cover their medical expenses.

The injured will continue to get their salaries and other allowances until they return to work.