Lawyers sent to jail pending hearing
Fri, Aug 5th, 2011 4:04 pm BdST
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Dhaka, Aug 5 (bdnews24.com) A magistrate has fixed Aug 8 for next hearing on a police appeal for a 10-day remand for each of the three lawyers arrested over scuffles in the High Court days ago.
The order came Friday after police produced BNP's reserved seat MP Syeda Asifa Ashrafi Papia, Abu Bakar Siddique and Towhidul Islam before the court of chief metropolitan magistrate Shahadat Hossain.
The magistrate said the hearing on the remand appeal was not possible on Friday as the prosecution failed to produce necessary documents. The order means the arrested lawyers would be behind bars, pending the hearing, until Aug 8.
The court also asked Aminur Rahman, assistant commissioner of police (prosecution), to present necessary documents when the court hears the proceedings.
Earlier Friday, police sought a 10-day remand for each in the cases involving the High Court chaos.
Barrister Mahbubuddin Khokon, Rafikul Islam Mian and Sanaullah Mia argued for bail for Papia and two others, but the court did not go ahead.
The court, however, ordered jail authorities to provide Papia with the first class division in line with jail code of the country.
Meanwhile, lawyers tied to BNP demonstrated on the court premises amid rains on Friday. They chanted anti-government slogans and demanded immediate release of the lawyers.
The lawyers are facing charges of assaulting police and barring police from performing their duty. The charges involve their role in the chaos during the hearing on a petition that questioned apparently seditious remarks on the country's constitution by Islami Oikya Jote faction leader Fazlul Haque Amini earlier this week. The lawyers scuffled, screamed and used abuses in front of two judges during the hearing.
The three were arrested on Thursday, a day after the High Court ordered 13 lawyers involved in the Tuesday's chaos not to enter courts across the country and asked the Bangladesh Bar Council to explain why their licences should not be cancelled and the persons punished.
Another 11 lawyers tied to BNP face similar charges in the case filed on Tuesday. The other lawyers are Sharif Uddin Ahmed, Qamrul Islam Sajal, Shahiduzzaman, Mirza Al Mahmud, Mahmud Arefin Swapan, Abdullah Al Mahmud, Enamul Hossain Gaffar, M U Ahmed, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Khan, Khristan Nabi and Rezwan Ahmed.
Ekatturer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee president Shahriar Kabir on July 20 filed a writ petition against Amini following his controversial remarks on the nation's charter.
Going further than what BNP chief Khaleda Zia had said with regard to the constitution, Amini had said at a meeting at Lalbagh on July 14, "It will not do if the amended constitution is only thrown away. It has to be thrown into a dustbin."
A day earlier, Khaleda Zia had said that the constitution would be thrown away when her party took office.
Lawyers with BNP and Awami League leanings began scuffling during the hearing after the High Court bench stated that difference between the statement of Amini and that of Khaleda Zia was negligible.
"We did not summon the opposition leader out of respect as a former prime minister. We warn that such statements will not be tolerated in future," the bench said.
bdnews24.com/pb/jr/1556h
Lawyers sent to jail pending hearing | Politics | bdnews24.com
Fri, Aug 5th, 2011 4:04 pm BdST
Dial 2000 from your GP mobile for latest news
Dhaka, Aug 5 (bdnews24.com) A magistrate has fixed Aug 8 for next hearing on a police appeal for a 10-day remand for each of the three lawyers arrested over scuffles in the High Court days ago.
The order came Friday after police produced BNP's reserved seat MP Syeda Asifa Ashrafi Papia, Abu Bakar Siddique and Towhidul Islam before the court of chief metropolitan magistrate Shahadat Hossain.
The magistrate said the hearing on the remand appeal was not possible on Friday as the prosecution failed to produce necessary documents. The order means the arrested lawyers would be behind bars, pending the hearing, until Aug 8.
The court also asked Aminur Rahman, assistant commissioner of police (prosecution), to present necessary documents when the court hears the proceedings.
Earlier Friday, police sought a 10-day remand for each in the cases involving the High Court chaos.
Barrister Mahbubuddin Khokon, Rafikul Islam Mian and Sanaullah Mia argued for bail for Papia and two others, but the court did not go ahead.
The court, however, ordered jail authorities to provide Papia with the first class division in line with jail code of the country.
Meanwhile, lawyers tied to BNP demonstrated on the court premises amid rains on Friday. They chanted anti-government slogans and demanded immediate release of the lawyers.
The lawyers are facing charges of assaulting police and barring police from performing their duty. The charges involve their role in the chaos during the hearing on a petition that questioned apparently seditious remarks on the country's constitution by Islami Oikya Jote faction leader Fazlul Haque Amini earlier this week. The lawyers scuffled, screamed and used abuses in front of two judges during the hearing.
The three were arrested on Thursday, a day after the High Court ordered 13 lawyers involved in the Tuesday's chaos not to enter courts across the country and asked the Bangladesh Bar Council to explain why their licences should not be cancelled and the persons punished.
Another 11 lawyers tied to BNP face similar charges in the case filed on Tuesday. The other lawyers are Sharif Uddin Ahmed, Qamrul Islam Sajal, Shahiduzzaman, Mirza Al Mahmud, Mahmud Arefin Swapan, Abdullah Al Mahmud, Enamul Hossain Gaffar, M U Ahmed, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Khan, Khristan Nabi and Rezwan Ahmed.
Ekatturer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee president Shahriar Kabir on July 20 filed a writ petition against Amini following his controversial remarks on the nation's charter.
Going further than what BNP chief Khaleda Zia had said with regard to the constitution, Amini had said at a meeting at Lalbagh on July 14, "It will not do if the amended constitution is only thrown away. It has to be thrown into a dustbin."
A day earlier, Khaleda Zia had said that the constitution would be thrown away when her party took office.
Lawyers with BNP and Awami League leanings began scuffling during the hearing after the High Court bench stated that difference between the statement of Amini and that of Khaleda Zia was negligible.
"We did not summon the opposition leader out of respect as a former prime minister. We warn that such statements will not be tolerated in future," the bench said.
bdnews24.com/pb/jr/1556h
Lawyers sent to jail pending hearing | Politics | bdnews24.com