219 expats sent to Dhaka jail 'over plot to tarnish country's image' 

A Dhaka court today sent 219 expatriate Bangladeshis, who returned here from Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, to jail on allegations of plotting to tarnish the image of the country.

Confirming the matter to The Business Standard, Kamruzzaman Sardar, additional deputy commissioner of Uttara zone, said, "Court sent them to jail following plea from the police."

The expats were kept at Diabari quarantine centre for 14 days after arriving from the middle eastern countries. Quoting sources, police filed complaint with the court saying it is risky to release them as they, in separate groups there, were planning to tarnish country's image with various misdeeds including robbing and stealing after release from the quarantine.    

These expatriates were serving different jail terms in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain on various charges. They were released from jail and deported to Bangladesh due to the coronavirus outbreak. So police here are investigating into the allegations against them now and pleaded to the court not to release them until the probe ends.