Staff Reporter :
A judicial magistrate court in Shillong on Wednesday framed charge-sheet against BNP leader Salahuddin Ahmed for illegal tresspassing into India.
The court framed the charge-sheet against Salahuddin Ahmed after hearing in a tresspassing case against him. Besides, the court fixed July 30 for next hearing of the case, according to news agencies. Though the hearing was scheduled to take place at the Shillong Chief Judicial Magistrate Court at 11am local time, the hearing was held in presence of accused Salahuddin at about 2.30pm. After the hearing, the court ordered charge framing.
When asked how long it would take to dispose off the case, Salahuddin’s lawyer said it is totally under the jurisdiction of the court. “It’s not possible to say how long it would take. However, I found that 90 per cent of such cases were disposed off very quickly,” he said.
Court sources said seven people have been made witnesses against Salahuddin. Under Section 14 of Foreigners’ Act of Tresspassing Case an accused may be awarded maximum five years’ jail and he or she may also be fined.
Salahuddin’s lawyer SP Mohanata said he would place the issue of his client before the court properly. Documents related to Salahuddin’s abduction in Bangladesh and subsequent incidents have already been submitted to the court.
The BNP leader has repeatedly claimed that someone left him abandoned here in Shillong after his abduction. So, the court was given necessary facts and figures during the charge framing hearing against him. The court was also told that Salahuddin went on missing and he was not responsible for tresspassing into India.
It may be recalled that Salahuddin was found in Shillong, the capital of Indian state of Meghalaya on May 11 last just two months after he went missing from Dhaka. Later, he was taken to police custody from a local hospital and was produced before a court on May 27. At the directive of the court, he was kept under judicial custody for 14 days. On June 5, Salahuddin got conditional bail from a Shillong court. Since then he has been staying in Shillong.
Shillong police sub-inspector P Lamarai submitted charge-sheet against Salahuddin for illegal tresspassing into India. The charge-sheet was submitted to Additional District Magistrate of Meghalaya on behalf of police on June 3. It was mentioned in the chargesheet that Salahuddin entered India without valid documents “with an ulterior motive and to avert trial in various cases filed against him in his own country.”
