Govt forms district committees to recommend withdrawal of political cases
The government has formed district-level committees to recommend the withdrawal of the cases deemed to have been filed for political harassment.
According to the gazette notification, political cases lodged between January 2009 and 5 August, 2024, will be considered under the initiative.
The information was disclosed in a revised notification recently issued by the Law-1 wing of the home ministry. Senior Secretary Manjur Morshed Chowdhury signed the notification.
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It said the committees were formed following an approval from the Cabinet Division, the sources added.
At the district level, the District Magistrate will serve as the chairperson of the committee. Members will include the Superintendent of Police and the Public Prosecutor or Metropolitan Public Prosecutor. The Additional District Magistrate will act as the member secretary of the committee.
The notification also outlined detailed procedures for submitting and disposing of the applications.
Accused persons or their close relatives may submit applications to the relevant District Magistrate. Applications must be accompanied by lawyer-certified photocopies of the relevant case documents.
Under the prescribed timeline, the District Magistrate will forward an application to the Public Prosecutor for opinion within seven working days of receiving it.
The Public Prosecutor must provide an opinion within 15 working days, after which the matter will be placed before the district committee for consideration.
If the committee finds that a case was filed for political reasons or with the intent to harass the accused for any other purpose, it will recommend to the government that the case be withdrawn.
The District Magistrate must send the recommendation and related information to the Ministry of Home Affairs within 45 working days of receiving the application.
The notification also stated that the previous circular issued on September 22, 2024, has been revoked. The new notification takes immediate effect.
