45 BNP leaders to stand trial, Rizvi faces arrest warrant on sabotage charges

The BNP leaders indicted on sabotage charges include Ruhul Quddus Talukdar Dulu, Barkat Ullah Bulu, Saiful Alam Nirob and Ishaq Sarkar

A Dhaka court has indicted 45 BNP leaders, including Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and Amanullah Aman, convenor of Dhaka Metropolitan North unit, on sabotage charges.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Tofazzal Hossain framed charges against the accused on Monday, eight years after the case was filed at Mohammadpur Police Station.

The court also issued an arrest warrant for Rizvi, who is currently in “hiding”.

The trial is set to begin on Jan 4, said court clerk Atiqur Rahman.

Other BNP leaders accused in the case include Ruhul Quddus Talukdar Dulu, Barkat Ullah Bulu, Saiful Alam Nirob and Ishaq Sarkar,

According to the case dossier, as many as 67 passengers were treated at Dhaka Medical College Hospital’s burn unit for injuries from a petrol bomb hurled at a bus in the Beribadh area on Jan 17, 2015.

Police pressed formal charges against 45 BNP leaders in 2016 over the incident that occurred during monthslong violent protests by the party.