BNP leader Mokbul remanded for 3 days over New Market clashes

Police have been granted three days to grill BNP leader Mokbul Hossain in custody over the violent clashes between Dhaka College students and shopkeepers in the capital's New Market area.

A Dhaka court passed the order on Saturday in response to the police's plea for a 7-day remand.

It comes against the backdrop of the BNP’s calls for his immediate release.

Mokbul, a former president of the BNP's New Market unit, was arrested on Friday on charges of inciting violence in a case filed with the New Market Police Station. The case also includes charges of obstructing government activity, attacking police, throwing brickbats, vandalism and injuring others.

Twenty-three other suspects are named in the case alongside 200-300 unnamed New Market traders and workers and 600-700 Dhaka College students.

In their petition, police highlighted the need to question Mokbul in custody to determine the cause of the violence and track down both named and unnamed suspects in the case.

However, Mokbul's legal team, which included former Dhaka Bar Association president Iqbal Hossain, appealed unsuccessfully for his bail while opposing the remand order on the grounds that he was "a victim of circumstances".

Mokbul, a lawyer by trade, has maintained his innocence and claimed that he was framed due to his political affiliation.

Police, however, said Mokbul instigated the suspects in the bloody skirmishes that led to the deaths of two people and left scores injured.

The BNP has announced plans for nationwide protests over the arrest of Mokbul. Rallies will be held in all metropolitan cities, including Dhaka, on Apr 26, BNP leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said at a media briefing on Saturday.