A Dhaka Court on Monday rejected bail petitions of 224 BNP leaders and activists, including party’s Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas, in a case filed over the December 7 clashes between police and BNP men in the capital's Nayapaltan area.
Judge of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Dhaka, Md Shafiuddin, passed the order after hearing the ‘special bail petitions, moved by the defence lawyers seeking bail in the case filed with Paltan Police Station.
Earlier on Sunday, lawyers of the BNP leaders and activists filed the bail petitions with the CMM Court in Dhaka. Judge of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Dhaka, Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, fixed Monday for the hearing on the bail petitions.
Lawyers Masud Ahmed Talukder, Zainul Abedin Mesbah, Mohiuddin Chowdhury, Borhan Uddin and others appeared in the court hearing on behalf of the BNP leaders and activists, while public prosecutor Abdhullah Abu opposed the bail petitions.
Among the 224 leaders and activists, Mirza Fakhrul and Mirza Abbas were arrested in early hours on Friday last on charges of plotting and inciting attacks on the police.
The others were arrested on December 7 in the wake of a clash between BNP activists and law enforcers. Courts later sent them to jail after turning down their bail pleas.
BNP's Publicity Secretary Shahiduddin Chowdhury Annie, Dhaka Metropolitan South unit Convener Abdus Salam, former Organising Secretary Fazlul Haque Milon, Joint Secretary General Khairul Kabir Khokon and former MP Selim Reza Habib were among the bail seekers.
In order to re-apply for bail within seven days of a petition being rejected, a special application has to be filed, said Advocate Zainul Abedin Mesbah. Accordingly, they filed it; however, they get the same result upon their special bail petitions.
During the bail hearing, defence lawyers told the court that Mirza Fakhrul, Mirza Abbas and others were not involved with the incident. They were implicated in the case just to harass them. So, they should be granted bail, the defence lawyers added.
The prosecution, however, opposed the bail petitions saying activists had carried out subversive activities as directives from high-profile leaders, including Fakhrul, Abbas and several others.
Upon hearing both sides, the magistrate dismissed the defence pleas considering the depth of offences brought against them in the case.
On December 7, a Swechchasebak Dal leader was killed and around 50 others were injured in a clash between police and the BNP activists in front of the party’s Naya Paltan central office ahead of its December 10 rally.
Police later started three cases against up to 2,000 people over the incident. They also cordoned off the party office.
