Warning: Undefined array key "rbname" in /data/rantburg.com/www/rantburg/pgrecentorg.php on line 14
Hello !

Bangladesh

Plot hatched in Hawa Bhaban meetings

2011-04-08

[Bangla Daily Star] Mufti Hannan in a confessional statement disclosed the involvement of Hawa Bhaban and some former BNP ministers and intelligence officials in the August 21, 2004, grenade attack on an Awami League rally. Harkat-ul Jihad (HuJI Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west. ) leader Mufti Mohammad Abdul Hannan made the fresh confessional statement before a Dhaka court yesterday about the attack that left Ivy Rahman, wife of President Zillur Rahman, dead along with 23 others and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina maimed. At least 300 others were also injured. On October 27, 2009, The Daily Star published an investigative report on the attack. The report disclosed the chilling conspiracy that was hatched in Hawa Bhaban. Hannan, prime accused in the case, on November 1, 2007, made a confessional statement but Criminal Investigation Department moved for a new confessional statement following revaluations of more information through investigation. First Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate AHM Habibur Rahman Bhuiyan recorded yesterday's statement for over five hours from 4:00pm. Sources in the CID said in the first confessional statement Hannan admitted carrying out the attack but in the new statement he said the attack was planned in meetings held at the Hawa Bhaban. Hawa Bhaban was widely regarded as the alternative powerhouse of the then BNP-led coalition government. Hannan said the meetings were held in presence of some then BNP ministers and businessmen close to BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami top brass. However, The emphatic However... the CID sources declined to disclose names of the people Hannan mentioned. Hannan said runaway Maulana Tajuddin, brother of jugged former BNP deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu, had coordinated the attackers and the people of different agencies who aided them. In the first confessional statement, Hannan said they had smuggled in the grenades from Afghanistan, where Hannan had joined the Mujahideens to fight against the Soviets in the 1980s. Now he says that the grenades came from Pakistain via Chittagong. In the first statement, Hannan said they planned the attack in a Badda house in the capital a few days ahead. He had said around 12 hard boyz carried out the attack. He had said they wanted to kill Sheikh Hasina because she had slapped a ban on religious edict when she was in power, the sources added. CID Special Superintendent Abdul Kahar Akand, investigation officer of the case, declined to make any comment on the new statement of Hannan. So far, 12 accused have given confessional statements admitting their involvement in the attack. They are Mufti Hannan, his brother Mohibullah alias Mafizur Rahman alias Ovi, Sharif Shahidul Islam alias Bipul, Maulana Abu Sayeed alias Abu Zafar, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Arif Hossain, Rafiqul Islam Sabuj and Jahangir Alam, Islamic Democratic Party leader Sheikh Abdus Salam, Pakistain based LeT leader Abdul Majid alias Yusuf Butt, LeT leader Abdul Malek alias Golam Mohammad and Abdur Rouf. The eight absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Maulana Tajuddin and Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman. On June 11, 2008, the CID submitted a charge sheet accusing 22 people, including top HuJI leader Mufti Abdul Hannan and BNP leader and former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu. But the court asked police for further investigation into the attack to find out the sources of the grenades used in the attack, the suppliers of the grenades and also to unfold the mystery behind defusing the unwent kaboom! grenades soon after recovery. During the rule of BNP-led coalition government, the then Sherlocks allegedly staged a drama to mislead the investigation and protect the real culprits.

Link

Bangladesh

15 militant outfits active

2010-03-30

[Bangla Daily Star] At least 15 foreign militant organisations were active or are still operating in Bangladesh since 1991 using the country as a safe shelter or transit to infiltrate neighbouring countries. The organisations are Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Tehrik-e-Jehad-e-Islami-Kashmiri (TJI), Harkat-ul Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jehadul Islami, Hizb-ul Mujahideen (HuM), Hezbe Islami, Jamiatul Mujahideen, Harkatul Ansar, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), India-based Asif Reza Commando Force (ARCF), Myanmar-based militant groups Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO), Arakan Rohingya National Organization (ARNO) and National United Party of Arakan (NUPA). This was revealed from the statements of several detained foreign and local militants and insiders of different intelligence and law-enforcement agencies dealing with militancy. Operatives of different foreign militant groups started visiting Bangladesh and spreading their tentacles with the help of banned local militant group Huji after the end of the Afghan war against Russian forces. The militant organisations operated almost undisturbed from 1991 to 1998 and then between 2001 and 2005 under the nose of the local administration. "During the BNP-Jamaat rule activities of the foreign militants marked a serious rise under the nose of the administration. Some of them were held and later given a safe passage," says a law enforcer requesting anonymity. Operatives of several groups used to visit Bangladesh from Pakistan and then India to commit their activities, while many from India also sneaked into Bangladesh and then visited Pakistan with fake Bangladeshi passports to The statements of detained militants also reveal agents of a Pakistani intelligence agency not only coordinated the militants' activities in Bangladesh but also provided them with necessary funds and training, sources say. have training on arms and explosives. Director General of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) Hassan Mahmood Khandkar said, "Now Bangladesh is no more a comfortable place for local or foreign militants as we constantly remain vigilant and go after militants upon instructions of the government." The statements of detained militants also reveal agents of a Pakistani intelligence agency not only coordinated the militants' activities in Bangladesh but also provided them with necessary funds and training, sources say. Now some militant groups are generating funds for them by selling counterfeit Indian currencies in India. The counterfeit currencies, especially Indian rupees and US dollars, are mainly forged in Pakistan and carried to Bangladesh via Dubai. Then a strong syndicate of militants and criminals supply the fake currencies to India. "We've detected at least three such gangs having around 50 members. One of the gangs is led by Bangladeshi citizen Majumder, one by Pakistani citizen Sarfaraz and the other by another Pakistani named Mohammad Danish," says a top police official asking not to be identified. Recently, an international money transfer has been detected through which some fund came from Pakistan to detained Pakistani national Rezwan. Law enforcers could not give a clear idea about how many foreign militant groups are active in Bangladesh. But recent arrests of over a dozen foreign militants belonging to LeT, JeM, HuM and ARCF suggest they are still active here, they say. One of the Huji founders, Moulana Sheikh Abdus Salam, who is behind bars in connection with the August 21 carnage case, named during interrogation nine Pakistan-based militant organisations which mainly work in Kashmir but also had operated in Bangladesh. The names of ARCF and LeT surfaced after the arrest of its leaders Indian citizens Mufti Obaidullah and Moulana Monsur Ali in May last year. The ARCF used to work for LeT. The recent arrest of Pakistani national Rezwan Ahmed who admitted at a press briefing of coordinating JeM activities in Bangladesh suggests the outfit is still active here. The name of another Pakistan-based militant outfit Tehrik-ul Mujahideen came to notice from the confessional statement of executed Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) chief Abdur Rahman. Rahman had visited Pakistan more than once and met Tehrik-ul Mujahideen leader Jamilur Rahman, who gave JMB 60,000 rupees and another Rs 1 lakh to Tahrikul-ul-Mujahideen's Bangladesh chapter leader Abdur Razzak of Natore. Salam also said Harkatul Mujahideen top leader and Pakistani nation Moulana Fazlur Rahman Khalil had also visited Bangladesh. Sources say Khalil made the visit in 1997 and met local militants at an NGO office in Mohammadpur in the capital. Sources in the law-enforcement and intelligence agencies say they have information about activities of RSO, ARNO and NUPA in the hill areas of Bandarban and Cox's Bazar. Moulana Salam also substantiated the claim as he in his statement said those groups still have some training camps in Naikhangchhari in Bandarban. Activities of HuM were detected a few months ago when the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) learned one year after the arrest of Abdul Majid alias Abu Yusuf Butt that he is from India-administered Kashmir. Moulana Salam said Moulana Tajuddin told him that Majid brought a consignment of grenades used in the August 21, 2004 attack from Chittagong. Analyses of interrogation statements of Mufti Obaidullah, Moulana Monsur Ali, Shaikh Abdur Rahman, Moulana Abdus Salam and Anisul Mursalin, now detained in India, Indian militants Faisal Nayeem alias Khurram alias Abdullah, Amir Raza, Mufti Obaidullah, Monsur Ali, Golam Yazdani alias Yahia, Mozammel and several others suggest that they had close relation with detained Huji linchpins Mufti Abdul Hannan, Abu Sayeed alias Dr Zafar and Moulana Abdur Rouf. Rouf, who was initially involved with Huji but later formed another militant group Tanjim-e Tamiruddin, visited an LeT safe shelter cum training camp in Habiganj in 2002. Khurram and Amir Raza had often visited Bangladesh but left the country in 2006.

Link

Bangladesh

Cops hunt for 40 Huji operatives

2010-01-20

[Bangla Daily Star] Around 40 operatives of outlawed Harkatul Jihad Al Islami (Huji) including convicted and charge-sheeted accused of different bomb attack cases are still on the run, posing a threat to the country. Some of the absconding militants are holding secret meetings and were even training up members at a secluded place in Mohammadpur in the capital a few months ago. However, the militants cancelled the training and abandoned the area after different intelligence and law-enforcement agencies started a hunt for them months after the present government assumed power, intelligence and Huji sources say. The absconding Huji leaders include some of the top brasses like Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Sheikh Farid, Maulana Abu Bakar, Abdul Hannan Sabbir, Maulana Liton, Abdul Hye, Abu Jehad, Abu Musa, Abdullah, Sagir Bin Emdad, Maulana Monir, Maulana Masum and Golam Mostafa. Most of them have training on sophisticated weapons and grenades. Sources in the law-enforcement agencies believe the militants responsible for deadly bomb and grenade attacks and death of over 90 people since 1999 are still a threat. However, top officials from Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and Detective Branch (DB) say since the absconding militants are on the run, possibility of any attack by them is very slim. "There is little chance of any attack by Huji men since we are always after them," Rab Director General Hassan Mahmood Khandkar told The Daily Star recently. DB Deputy Commissioner Monirul Islam also expressed similar view on the issue. The Rab DG said they have lists of the members of not only Huji but also other militant outfits including banned Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and are always after them. Some Afghan war veterans launched the Bangladesh chapter of Huji on April 30, 1992 with an aim to establish Islamic rule in the country. Since then it spread its tentacles across the country until 1996 with the very knowledge of the then government. After the political changeover in 2001 Huji again started its activities which were an open secret to the BNP-Jamaat-led alliance government. Probes into the August 21 attempt on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's [then main opposition leader] life have already revealed involvement of former deputy minister of BNP government Abdus Salam Pintu and a number of Huji leaders. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is now carrying out further investigation into the cases and has already arrested BNP leader and former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar and Huji founder Sheikh Abdus Salam. The sources say an influential intelligence agency helped Maulana Tajuddin, who supplied grenades for the August 21 attacks, flee the country. The sources add the agency in October 2004 also helped Hafez Jahangir Badar flee to Saudi Arabia where he became a major source of Huji funding later. Some Huji kingpins including the outfit's founders Sheikh Abdus Salam and Shawkat Osman alias Sheikh Farid even used to meet a section of officials of that intelligence agency during the BNP-Jamaat rule and even during the immediate past caretaker rule, say the sources. Salam, arrested in November last year in connection with the August 21 carnage, claimed he had maintained connection with the agency and tried to form Islamic Democratic Party (IDP) with its consent during the caretaker regime. Some 475 Afghan war veterans joined the IDP, sources say. The attacks by Huji include the August 21 carnage in 2004, Ramna Batamul blast in 2001, Udichi blast in 1999, Narayanganj Awami League office blast in 2001, CPB rally blast at Paltan Maidan in 2001, and attempt on the then British high commissioner in 2004. The sources say intelligence agencies launched raids on Huji hideouts to trap militant leaders including Shawkat Osman alias Sheikh Farid in vain in recent months. Two of the Huji absconders -- Anisul Mursalin and Muhibul Mottakin -- are now in Tihar Jail in India after they were arrested by the Indian security forces in 2006.

Link

Bangladesh

Grenades delivered from Pintu's house

2009-10-09

[Bangla Daily Star] Detained former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu admitted that the Arges grenades used in the August 21 blast were delivered from his Dhanmondi government residence. Additional Superintendent of CID and investigation officer (IO) of the case Abdul Kahar Akond said this in his forwarding report yesterday. But he did not mention who delivered those grenades from the BNP leader's residence and to whom they were handed over. The report also said Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (Huji) members held a meeting at his (Pintu) residence before blasting grenades on an Awami League rally on August 21, 2004 that left 23 people dead and a number of people injured. The BNP leader during the last three days' remand admitted that his brother Maulana Tajuddin, a Huji member, had supplied the grenades used in the attack, the IO said. IO Akond added Pintu needs to be remanded to identify those who had supplied the Arges grenades to the Huji members. CID produced Pintu and Huji member Maulana Abu Taher before court on completion of their three-day remand. They sought further seven-day remand only to interrogate Pintu. But Metropolitan Magistrate Syeda Minhaz Um Munira fixed October 11 for hearing on the remand prayer, as the prosecution failed to place case diary yesterday. The court also ordered to send the two arrestees to the Dhaka Central Jail and directed the jail authorities to produce Pintu before the court on scheduled date. On August 3, a Dhaka court ordered further investigation into the August 21 attack stating the probe conducted earlier could not identify the collectors and suppliers of the grenades. The CID, which misdirected the investigation during BNP-led government, finally pressed charges in June last year accusing Pintu and 21 Huji members including its top leader Mufti Abdul Hannan. The eight absconding accused in the case are Pintu's brothers Tajuddin and Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman.

Link

Bangladesh

Pintu, Taher remanded again

2009-10-02

[Bangla Daily Star] BNP leader and former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu and Harkatul Jihad (Huji) member Maulana Abu Taher were placed on remand to identify collectors and suppliers of Arges grenades used in the August 21 carnage on Bangabandhu Avenue. Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Shahadat Hossain placed Pintu and Taher on three-day remand each as Criminal Investigation Department (CID) yesterday produced them before his court with separate remand prayers. The CID sought ten-day remand for Pintu and five-day remand for Taher even though they were taken on different terms of remand for interrogation. Defence lawyers Masud Ahmed Talukder and Sanaullah Miah filed petitions for cancelling the remand prayers saying the prosecution submitted fresh remand prayers to harass their clients and implicate several BNP leaders. After hearing both sides, the court rejected the defence's prayer and placed the accused on fresh remand. The remand prayers came following a further investigation into the case filed by the prosecution on June 25 this year to trace suppliers of Arges grenade that were used in the attack on August 21, 2004. In the forwarding report, newly appointed investigation officer Additional Superintendent of Police Abdul Kahar Akond said they need to remand the accused to find out clues when and why they held a meeting at Pintu's government residence before committing the offences. On August 3, a Dhaka court ordered further investigation into the August 21 grenade attack on an Awami League rally, stating that the probe conducted earlier could not identify the collectors and suppliers of grenades. The court also ordered the inspector general of police to conduct the investigation and submit the report to the court within two months. Awami League President Sheikh Hasina had narrowly escaped the attack but 23 of her party leaders and workers died and over 300 were injured. The eight absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Tajuddin and Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman. The CID, which had misdirected the investigation during BNP-Jamaat-led four-party rule, finally pressed charges in June last year accusing Pintu and 21 Huji members including its top leader Mufti Abdul Hannan.

Link

Bangladesh

Grenade suppliers gone missing

2009-08-04

[Bangla Daily Star] A Dhaka court yesterday ordered further investigation into the August 21, 2004 grenade attack on an Awami League rally, stating that the investigation conducted earlier could not identify the collectors and suppliers of grenades used in the attack. The court ordered the inspector general of police to conduct the investigation and submit the report to the court within two months. The order came after a state lawyer, seeking further investigation into the two cases filed in connection with the attack on the rally on Bangabandhu Avenue, submitted two petitions before the court. Awami League President Sheikh Hasina narrowly escaped the attack but 23 of her party leaders and workers were killed and over 300 were maimed. The lawyer in the petitions, submitted on June 25, said influential people who had supplied the grenades are still untraced. After hearing the petitions on three days, Judge Masdar Hossain of the Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 passed the orders. During the rule of four-party government, the investigation officers misdirected the probe by detaining one Juj Miah and forcing him to give false confessional statement, the judge said. It was not possible for them, who were earlier arrested in this connection and had given confessional statements, to have had carried out the attack since they could not give any details on the attack, he said. A total of 61 prosecution witnesses had earlier given their statements but they did not mention who were the planners and patrons. So the real culprits are still at large, the judge said. The judge further said that the prosecution only to find out the fact filed the petitions. So the order for further investigation was given to establish justice for both parties, the judge added. Defence lawyers for detained accused Pintu opposed the petitions saying the prosecution had filed those only to implicate several other BNP leaders and activists. After the order, a defence lawyer told reporters, "The unprecedented order was issued ignoring our arguments." Of the 22 accused in the cases, 14 are now behind bars, including Pintu, Hannan and his brother Mohibullah, Moulana Abu Sayeed, Moulana Abu Taher, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Zandal. The eight absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Tajuddin and Moulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Moulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman. The Criminal Investigation Department, which had misdirected the investigation during the reign of BNP-Jamaat-led four-party alliance government, finally pressed charges in June last year accusing 21 members of Harkatul Jihad Al Islami (Huji) including its top leader Mufti Abdul Hannan and BNP leader and former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu. In the charge sheet, the CID only mentioned Tajuddin, brother of Pintu, as the supplier of the grenades. The CID investigators could not find out who gave him the grenades and how. Meanwhile, Indian national Moulana Mansur Ali, an organiser of Kashmir-based militant outfit Asif Reza Commando Force, disclosed to investigators that one of its leaders from India had given the grenades to Tajuddin in person, said officials of Detective Branch of police.

Link

Bangladesh

ARCF supplied grenades for Aug 21 attack

2009-08-01

[Bangla Daily Star] Kashmir-based militant outfit Asif Reza Commando Force (ARCF), which works together with Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), supplied grenades to LeT Bangladesh chapter leader Moulana Tajuddin for the August 21 attack in 2004. This was revealed by detained LeT leader Indian national Moulana Mansur Ali as the government pushes for further investigation into the grisly attack particularly to unearth if any influential quarters supplied the grenades. Mansur, who is also an ARCF organiser, told Detective Branch (DB) during interrogation that an ARFC leader, who is also from India, directly handed over the grenades to Tajuddin, brother of detained former BNP deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu. The investigators however did not reveal the Indian national's name for the sake of investigation. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in its charge sheet only mentioned that Tajuddin had supplied the grenades. But the CID investigators could not find out who handed over the grenades to him and how. Chief Public Prosecutor Syed Rezaur Rahman on June 25 submitted a prayer to a Dhaka court for further investigation into the attack, which aimed to assassinate AL President Sheikh Hasina in 2004. Rahman in his prayer argued that experts and influential people who had supplied the grenades were still untraced. The court which has already heard the prayer on three dates has fixed August 3 for an order in this regard. "We're expecting more important leads from Mansur on the suppliers of grenades used in the August 21 attack," said a top detective on the understanding of anonymity. The grisly attack on Hasina's rally on Bangabandhu Avenue killed 23 AL leaders and workers and maimed over 300 others. The investigators say both ARCF and LeT have close links to the leaders of Harkatul Jihad al Islam (Huji) Bangladesh chapter and work together in the country. Mansur, who was living in Bangladesh for around 17 years with fake identity and serving as a madrasa teacher, also said most of the grenade throwers at the AL rally were Afghan war veterans having expertise in handling explosives, the sources add. Quoting Mansur, DB sources say the grenades were smuggled into the country through Satkhira border. The other detained LeT leader Mufti Obaidullah was also hiding in Bangladesh for 14 years assuming false identity and was serving as a madrasa teacher. DB Assistant Commissioner Sanwar Hossain, who arrested the two Indian militants, told The Daily Star, "Mansur said ARCF leaders led by a moulana handed over the grenades to Tajuddin." Quoting Mansur, Sanwar also said most of the grenade throwers were Afghan war veterans with skills in handling explosives. He added some others who took part in the attack were not fighters but were trained up by the war veterans. The CID submitted the charge sheet in the grenade attack case on June 11 last year accusing 22 people including Abdus Salam Pintu and Huji leader Mufti Hannan. According to the charge sheet, apart from Pintu, all other accused are Huji leaders and activists. Of them, 14 are now behind bars, including Pintu, Mufti Hannan and his brother Mohibullah, Moulana Abu Sayeed, Moulana Abu Taher, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Zandal. The eight absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Tajuddin and Moulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Moulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman.

Link

Bangladesh

Aug 21 case goes to trial

2008-10-30

A Dhaka court yesterday finally framed charges against detained former BNP lawmaker Abdus Salam Pintu, Harkatul Jihad (Huji) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan and 20 others in two cases filed for grenade attacks on an Awami League (AL) rally in August 2004. Judge Mohammad Masdar Hossain of the Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 also rejected the discharge petitions of Pintu, Hannan and 12 others in jail custody. The court fixed November 5 for trial of the cases--one for murder and another for bomb blast--and summoned the complainant to appear before it on that date. The grenade attacks on the AL rally on Bangabandhu Avenue on August 21, 2004 left 24 people including Ivy Rahman, wife of acting AL President Zillur Rahman, killed and 200 others including AL chief Sheikh Hasina injured. Charges were framed in the cases after hearing had to be adjourned on nine consecutive dates following tie petitions from both the prosecution and defence. Both the cases were earlier shifted to the tribunal for quick disposal following a home ministry order. In the murder case, charges were framed against all the 22 accused under sections 307 (attempt to murder), 326 (grievous hurt), 324 (causing hurt), 109 (abetment), 34 (criminal liability), 120(B) (criminal conspiracy) and 302 (murder) of the Penal Code. Bomb blast charges were framed against them under sections 3, 4 and 6 of the Explosive Substances Act. The court charged Pintu also with approving the plan of the grenade attack prepared by Hannan and his accomplices. The former BNP lawmaker was also charged with assisting the Huji men with finances and administrative help and abetting them for killing and injuring the victims. Pintu, Hannan and 12 others, who are now in jail custody, pleaded not guilty and demanded justice after the charges were read out to them. Eight accused have been absconding. The 12 accused in jail are Hannan's brother Mohibullah alias Mafizur Rahman alias Ovi, Sharif Shahidul Islam alias Bipul, Maulana Abu Sayeed alias Dr Abu Zafar, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Jahangir Alam, Maulana Abu Taher, Shahadatullah Jewel, Hossain Ahmed Tamim, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Zandal alias Masum Billah, Arif Hasan Sumon, Rafiqul Islam Sabuj and Mohammad Ujjal alias Ratan. The eight absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Maulana Tajuddin and Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman. Charges were framed against them in absentia and their trial will be continued in their absence. During the investigation of the cases, Hannan, Bipul, Ovi, Abu Sayeed, Bulbul, Arif Hossain, Jahangir and Sabuj gave statements under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) confessing their involvement in the grenade attack. Special Public Prosecutor Firoz Kamrul Hassan and advocates Syed Rezaur Rahman, M Sajwar Hossain and Saharar Khatun appeared for the state during yesterday's hearing. THE CASE The police filed the two cases with Motijheel Police Station a day after the grenade attack. On June 5 last year, Badar Aziz Uddin of Cox's Bazar filed another case with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, Dhaka, charging former premier Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman, Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami and 25 others with murder. However, the investigation officer of the case, Criminal Investigation Department Assistant Superintendent Fazlul Kabir, did not find any links of them to the incident. On June 11 this year, the investigation officer of the two cases submitted the charge sheets, accusing the 22 persons in each case. The charge sheets contain 42 pages each while the case dockets have more than 3,000 pages. A total of 408 persons, including Hasina and other top AL leaders, have been made prosecution witnesses in the cases. Besides, 69 types of evidence including Hasina's sports utility vehicle, the truck used as the makeshift podium at the rally, grenade splinters and blood stained clothes were submitted.

Link

Bangladesh

2 HUJI cases shifted to Speedy Trial Tribunal

2008-09-05

The two cases filed in connection with the August 21 grenade attack on an Awami League (AL) rally in 2004 were transferred yesterday to a Speedy Trial Tribunal of Dhaka for quick disposal. The cases were filed for the grenade attacks on an the rally on Bangabandhu Avenue that left 23 people dead and around 200 others injured. The murder case is now pending with the Court of Second Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge and the grenade attack case with the Court of Metropolitan Sessions Judge of Dhaka. Following an order signed on August 26 by the home ministry, Judge Mohammad Azizul Haque of the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court transferred the cases to the Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 where Mohammad Masdar Hossain is the conducting judge. Earlier on August 31, the conducting judge fixed September 8 for hearing on charge framing against 22 accused including detained former BNP lawmaker Abdus Salam Pintu and Harkatul Jihad (Huji) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan in the grenade attack case. On the other hand, another Dhaka court the same day directed eight absconding Huji members including brothers of Pintu to appear before the court by September 21. Of the accused, Pintu, Mufti Hannan, his brother Mohibullah alias Mafizur Rahman alias Ovi, Sharif Shahidul Islam alias Bipul, Maulana Abu Sayeed alias Dr Abu Zafar, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Jahangir Alam, Maulana Abu Taher, Shahadatullah Jewel, Hossain Ahmed Tamim, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Zandal alias Masum Billah, Arif Hasan Sumon, Rafiqul Islam Sabuj and Mohammad Ujjal alias Ratan were earlier arrested and are now in jail custody. Pintu's brother Maulana Tajuddin, Maulana Liton, and Anisul Mursalin, Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman have been absconding since the cases were filed. Eight of the arrestees -- Hannan, Bipul, Ovi, Abu Sayeed, Bulbul, Arif Hossain, Jahangir and Sabuj -- gave statements under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code confessing their involvement in the incident. On June 11 this year, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Assistant Superintendent Fazlul Kabir, also investigation officer (IO) of the cases, submitted the charge sheets to the Court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Dhaka, showing 412 people as prosecution witnesses. A day after the grenade attack, the police filed two cases -- one for murder and another under the Explosive Substances Act -- with Motijheel Police Station.

Link

Bangladesh

Court raps cops for failure to arrest Huji men

2008-07-25

A Dhaka court yesterday expressed dissatisfaction over negligence in duties by police personnel in executing arrest warrants against seven absconding Harkatul Jihad (Huji) members accused in the August 21 grenade attack case. Metropolitan Sessions Judge Mohammad Azizul Haque asked the Public Prosecutor (PP) to take actions against the policemen who failed to comply with the court order. The court said it had issued arrest warrants against the absconding accused on June 23 and directed the authorities concerned to send copies of the arrest warrants to their addresses the same day. But the officers-in-charge (OC) of different police stations, who had been asked to return reports on arrest warrants to the court by yesterday, did not comply with the court order. The court also said the police submitted the charge sheet of the case after four years of the grenade attacks and have been trying to delay trial. Only Barisal Kotwali police submitted a report on the arrest warrant against Abu Bakar alias Hafez Selim mentioning that they could not arrest him. Meantime, the same court rejected the bail petitions of detained former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu and three Huji members, Arif Hasan Sumon, Jahangir Alam and Shahadat Ullah Jewel. Huji Chief Mufti Abdul Hannan and Sumon submitted petitions for retraction of their confessional statements saying that they were forced to give the statements. The court fixed August 10 for next hearing of the case and directed the OC of different police stations to submit reports on arrest warrants against the seven absconding accused on the scheduled date. The prosecution told the judge that they would try to make sure that police submit the reports in due time. Moving the bail petitions, the lawyers told the court that their clients were implicated in the case as part of a conspiracy to harass them. The prosecution said the petitions should be rejected as they had earlier confessed to their involvement in the incident. The case was filed for carrying out grenade attacks on an Awami League (AL) rally on August 21, 2004 that left 23 people dead and around 200 injured. Detained former lawmaker Pintu and other accused, who are in jail custody now, were produced before the court. The seven absconding accused are Pintu's brothers Maulana Tajuddin and Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman.

Link

Bangladesh

Arrest warrant issued against 8 Huji fugitives

2008-06-24

A Dhaka court yesterday issued arrest warrants against eight absconding Harkatul Jihad (Huji) members including Maulana Tajuddin, brother of detained former BNP lawmaker Abdus Salam Pintu, in the August 21 grenade attack case. Metropolitan Sessions Court Judge Mohammad Azizuz Haque accepted the charge sheet of the case and took the charges into cognisance for trial after examining all relevant documents. The court directed the authorities concerned to send copies of the arrest warrants to the addresses of the absconding accused. It also fixed July 24 for returning the arrest warrants to the court. Assistant superintendent of police of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Fazlul Kabir, also the investigation officer (IO) of the case, was present at the court. The court on June 18 found flaws in the investigation of the case and asked the investigation officer (IO) to appear before the court yesterday and give explanation. The court also asked the IO to explain why he prayed for discharging four accused --Omar Faruk, Ferdous, Shuvo and Babu -- although the charges brought against them were found to be true. IO Fazlul Kabir told the court that he found involvement of the four with the grenade attacks on an Awami League rally, but he could not verify their real names and addresses. He said if he finds out their real names and addresses, he will submit a supplementary charge sheet against them. So, he prayed for dropping the charges against the four, the IO added. Earlier on June 11, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate AKM Enamul Haque accepted the charge sheet of the case against the 22 accused, including detained former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu, in the second case filed in connection with the August 21 grenade attack on AL rally. The seven other absconding accused are Pintu's another brother Maulana Liton, Anisul Mursalin and his brother Mahibul Muttakin, Iqbal, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Howlader, Jahangir Alam Badar and Khalilur Rahman. The IO on June 11 submitted the charge sheets of the cases against the accused to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court showing 408 people as prosecution witnesses. The accused who are behind bars now are Mufti Hannan, his brother Mohibullah alias Mafizur Rahman alias Ovi, Sharif Shahidul Islam alias Bipul, Maulana Abu Sayeed alias Dr Abu Zafar, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Jahangir Alam, Maulana Abu Taher, Shahadatullah Jewel, Hossain Ahmed Tamim, Abdus Salam Pintu, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Zandal alias Masum Billah, Arif Hasan Sumon, Rafiqul Islam Sabuj and Mohammad Ujjal alias Ratan. Eight of the arrestees -- Hannan, Bipul, Ovi, Abu Sayeed, Bulbul, Arif Hossain, Jahangir and Sabuj -- gave statements under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code admitting to their involvement with the incident. Police filed two cases with the Motijheel Police Station a day after 23 people were killed in a grenade attack on the Awami League rally on August 21, 2004. One case was filed on charges of murder while the other was filed under the Explosive Substances Act. Badar Aziz Uddin of Cox's Bazar filed another case with the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court on June 5 last year against former premier Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman, Jamaat Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami and 25 others on charges of murder. However, IO Fazlul Kabir did not find their involvement with the incident. The IO of the cases filed by the police submitted the charge sheets, accusing 22 people in each of the two cases. He prayed for dropping the charges against 30 other accused held in connection with the grenade attack, as their involvement with the incident was not found

Link

Warning: Undefined property: stdClass::$T in /data/rantburg.com/www/rantburg/pgrecentorg.php on line 132
-11 More