BNP leader Hafiz denied bail, sent to jail

A Dhaka court has rejected the bail plea of BNP standing committee member Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and sent him to jail in a sabotage case. 

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Rajesh Chowdhury on Tuesday passed the order after the BNP leader surrendered before the court and filed a bail petition through his lawyer.

The same court on December 28 sentenced BNP Vice-Chairmen Air Vice Marshal (retd) Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and Bangladesh Nationalist Movement (BNM) leader Major (retd) Md Hanif to 21 months in jail in the case.

They received 21 months’ imprisonment under two separate sections of the Penal Code and a fine of Tk 5,000 each. 

Five other accused - MA Awal Khan, Md Russel, Moinul Islam, Md Babul Hossain alias Babu and Md Alamgir Hossain alias Razu - were jailed for three and a half years and fined Tk 5,000 each.

Of them, Altaf Hossain secured bail and was released from jail recently. But Hafiz Uddin could not appear before the court as he was abroad for medical treatment. 

The case statement said the accused were involved in obstructing police and attacking them from an unlawful rally in Mohakhali of the capital Dhaka on June 4, 2011. They were also charged with vandalizing and torching vehicles on the road.