Abbas, Rizvi among 167 BNP leaders exempted from sabotage case
The case was filed over an alleged unlawful assembly, possession of deadly weapons, and an attack on police with the intent to kill, as well as the explosion of cocktails
A Dhaka court has exempted today (13 October) BNP Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas and Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, along with 165 others, from charges in a sabotage case filed seven years ago with Paltan Model Police Station.
The case was filed over an alleged unlawful assembly, possession of deadly weapons, and an attack on police with the intent to kill, as well as the explosion of cocktails.
Taking into account the final police report, Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Sabbir Foyez passed the order today.
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Mohiuddin Chowdhury, lawyer for Mirza Abbas, confirmed the matter to the media. He said police had found no evidence supporting the allegations during the investigation and accordingly recommended that all the accused be exempted in the final report submitted to the court. The court accepted the report and cleared them of all charges.
According to the case statement, on 14 November 2018, a procession led by Afroza Abbas marched from Fakirapool toward the BNP's central office at Naya Paltan, accompanied by banners, festoons, and a band party. Two more processions, led by Nabi Ullah Nabi and Kofil Uddin, followed, and finally, Mirza Abbas arrived with a rally of 8,000–10,000 people, also carrying banners and festoons.
The rallies reportedly blocked the VIP Road at Naya Paltan, disrupting traffic and causing public inconvenience. Police requested them to leave one lane open for vehicular movement, but the activists became agitated. Law enforcers informed Rizvi and other senior BNP leaders at the party office about the violation of the election code of conduct and urged cooperation.
The case file states that, acting on prior planning, Abbas and others allegedly came out of the BNP office armed with sticks and set fire to a police pickup truck worth Tk60 lakh. They were accused of attacking police personnel with bricks and stones, attempting to kill them, and setting fire to an official Mitsubishi car worth Tk35 lakh, which was completely burnt. Several policemen were injured and treated at the Rajarbag Central Police Hospital.
Following the incident, Sub-Inspector Md Al Amin of Paltan Police Station filed the case. The investigating officer later submitted the final report to the court.
