Staff Reporter :
Former Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) lawmaker Dewan Mohammad Salahuddin Babu and Savar Municipality Mayor Refat Ullah were arrested from the capital and Savar respectively on Sunday.
“They (Salahuddin Babu and Refat Ullah) were arrested in connection with explosive substance and firearms cases,” Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Savar Model Police Station told The New Nation yesterday.
Dewan Mohammad Salahuddin Babu, vice-president of Dhaka District BNP unit, was a lawmaker and Refat Ullah, Mayor of Savar Municipality and also BNP president of the municipality unit.
“Seeking 20 days remand in each of the two cases, police produced Salahuddin Babu and Refat Ullah before the senior judicial magistrate Syed Siraj Zinnat’s court in Dhaka. But the court granted five days remand each for interrogating them,” the OC said.
He said police in separate drives arrested Dewan Mohammad Salahuddin from a residence at Paribagh in the city and Refat Ullah from his residence at Kornopara in Savar municipality area.
“Salahuddin was fugitive in several cases filed against him for arson attack on vehicles in Savar and Ashulia areas after the last year’s January 5 election.
Earlier on Saturday, five leaders and activists of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir were arrested along with firearms, bullets and crackers from a secret meeting in Savar area, the OC said.
He said based on the information extracted from the arrested persons, Salahuddin Babu and Refat Ullah were arrested.
“Salahuddin Babu and Refat Ullah brought the arrested persons to Savar from different parts of the country in a bid to unleash subversive act,” the OC said.
He said a special squad of Savar Police conducted a drive in Paribagh area of Dhaka around 6:00am yesterday and arrested Salahuddin Babu from his house.
“He was accused in several sabotage cases in Savar and Ashulia police stations and was absconding,” added the police official.
On the other hand, a team from Savar Model Police Station arrested Mayor Mohammad Refat Ullah from his Kornopara residence in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said Refat Ullah is accused in several cases filed with Savar and Ashulia police stations.
