A Kushtia court has remanded four arrestees in police custody in a case of vandalising the sculpture of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the city.
Senior Judicial Magistrate Enamul Haque issued the order on Tuesday, said Nishikanta Das, chief of the Kushtia Model Police Station.
The arrestees are Abu Bakr, 19, and Md Sabuj Islam Nahid, 20, students of Ibne Masud Madrasa at Jugia Poshchimpara in the town, and teachers Al Amin, 27, and Yusuf Ali, 27, reports bdnews24.com.
Police took the four to the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Rezaul Karim on Monday, seeking to interrogate them in their custody. But the judge was on leave.
Magistrate Enamul Haque heard the remand appeal on Tuesday and granted five-day remand for the two students and four days for the teachers.
Police arrested them over the vandalising of Bangabandhu’s sculpture under the Special Powers Act 1974 and sought a 10-day remand for the students and seven days for the teachers.
On Friday, the vandals defaced the sculpture of Bangabandhu under the cover of night in Kushtia amid a clamour from Islamic groups to stop building sculptures of the Father of the Nation.
Police identified the culprits from CCTV footage where they were seen clad in Panjabis and skull caps, walking towards the under-construction sculpture before climbing up a ladder and vandalising it at around 2 am Saturday.
The right hand, face and parts of the left hand of the sculpture, which is under construction at a five-road intersection in Kushtia Municipality, were damaged by the miscreants.
The Kushtia Municipality took the initiative to build three sculptures of Bangabandhu at the site. Work on the sculpture targeted by the vandals was almost complete before the incident.
Different groups and organisations expressed grievances over the matter after it came to their notice on Saturday morning.