Court acquits Mirza Abbas, Amanullah Aman, 43 others in two sabotage cases

A Dhaka court has acquitted BNP Standing Committee member and the party's nominated candidate for the Dhaka-8 constituency, Mirza Abbas, along with Khaleda Zia's adviser Aman Ullah Aman and 43 others in two sabotage cases filed with Paltan and Shahjahanpur police stations in the capital.

The order was passed today (17 December) by the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mehedi Hasan following a hearing.

Mirza Abbas's lawyers, Abu Bakar Siddique and Mahi Uddin Chowdhury, confirmed the development. They said that the day had been fixed for charge-framing hearings in the two separate cases, and petitions seeking discharge were submitted on behalf of the accused. After hearing arguments, the court granted the petitions and acquitted them.

Other acquitted accused include BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Vice-Chairman Abdullah Al Noman, Chairperson's advisory council member Advocate Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal, former Dhaka North BNP convener and Dhaka-12 candidate Saiful Alam Nirab, BNP Joint Secretary General Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel, former central organizing secretary of Jubo Dal Ishaq Ali Sarkar, Dhaka South Jubo Dal convener Khandakar Enamul Haque Enam, Dhaka-18 candidate and Dhaka North BNP Joint Convener SM Jahangir Hossain, BNP central executive committee member and former Jubo Dal organizing secretary Mamun Hasan, BNP national executive committee volunteer affairs secretary Mir Sharafat Ali Safu, BNP central publicity secretary Sultan Salahuddin Tuku, Dhaka-9 candidate and former central secretary of Chhatra Dal Habibur Rashid Habib, among others.  

In the Paltan police station case, the charge sheet alleges that 1,000 to 12,000 leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated organisations marched from in front of the party's central office towards Shantinagar on 3 February 2013. Around 5pm, at Shantinagar crossing, they threw bricks and stones, damaged vehicles, and became more aggressive when cops tried to disperse them. They obstructed police work and threw more bricks and stones at officers. Later, five cocktails were thrown at the cops with the intent to kill, resulting in injuries to several. The Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) of Paltan police station, Mehedi Masud, filed the case as the complainant.

In the same year, on 26 March, ASI Mohammad Aminul Islam filed a charge sheet against 26 people, including BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir. However, the High Court acquitted Mirza Fakhrul and Barrister Moudud Ahmed in this case.

The charge sheet in the Shahjahanpur police station case states that 150 to 200 BNP leaders and activists marched in the Malibagh area under Shahjahanpur on 3 February 2013. Around 4:30pm, they created chaos, obstructed police work, and threw bricks and stones when cops tried to stop them. They set fire to police vehicles, causing damage worth Tk3 lakh. On the day, ASI Mohammad Ashraf Ali filed the case.