One accused in Bailey Road fire case withdraws bail plea, another gets bail
The court granted bail to Adib Alam and kept the order on Ramzanul Haque Nihad’s bail application pending. Later in the afternoon, Nihad’s lawyers withdrew the application.
A Dhaka court today (17 May) granted bail to one accused and allowed another to withdraw his bail application in the case filed over the deadly Bailey Road fire that killed 46 people in February 2024.
The court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Hasan Shahadat granted bail to Fuoco Restaurant owner Adib Alam on a bond of Tk5,000, while the bail application of Md Ramzanul Haque Nihad, proprietor of Amin Mohammad Foundation, was later withdrawn after being filed.
State prosecutor Muhammad Shamsuddoha Sumon confirmed the matter.
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Earlier in the day, the two accused surrendered before the court through their lawyers and sought bail.
During the hearing, defence lawyers, including Md Abdul Karim, Adi Uz-zaman and Sadia Arefin, argued that Nihad was outside the country at the time of the fire and had no involvement in the incident.
They also claimed he had been implicated in the case to harass him and had himself suffered losses in the incident.
On behalf of Adib Alam, the lawyers argued that his name was not included in the First Information Report (FIR) and that he was later made an accused in the charge sheet. They said he would not abscond if granted bail.
The state prosecutor opposed the bail petitions.
After hearing both sides, the court granted bail to Adib Alam and kept the order on Nihad's bail application pending. Later in the afternoon, Nihad's lawyers withdrew the application.
Earlier, on 19 April, the court accepted a charge sheet submitted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) against 22 accused, including owners of several restaurants operating in the Green Cozy Cottage building on Bailey Road. The court also issued arrest warrants against 13 absconding accused.
CID Inspector Shah Jalal Munshi, also the investigation officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet on 2 April.
The accused named in the charge sheet include owners and managers of Chayer Chumuk Coffee Shop, Kacchi Bhai, Khanaz, Tawaz Restaurant, Zesty Restaurant, Fuoco Restaurant, Mezbanikhana, Ambrosia, Pizzain and Street Oven.
According to the charge sheet, the accused operated restaurants illegally without obtaining approval from the relevant authorities and used gas cylinders and electric ovens without following safety regulations.
The CID said these violations led to the fire at the seven-storey Green Cozy Cottage building on Bailey Road at around 9:45pm on 29 February 2024.
The fire killed 46 people, including three whose bodies were completely burnt.
Following the incident, Sub-Inspector Mohammad Shahidul Islam of Ramna Model Police Station filed the case.
