Staff Reporter :
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the High Court orders that granted bail to seven accused who were convicted in a case filed over the attack on motorcade of Sheikh Hasina the then opposition leader and now Prime Minister, in Satkhira in 2002.
Chamber judge of the Appellate Division of the SC Justice Hasan Foez Siddique passed the order following a petition filed by the State, seeking stay on the HC orders.
The chamber judge also sent the petition to its full bench and fixed May 30 for full hearing on the stay petition, said Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokan who appeared in the case on behalf of the accused. The lawyer also said the chamber judge’s stay order will continue till May 30.
In view separate petitions, the High Court on last Tuesday granted bail to seven accused who were convicted in a case filed over the attack on motorcade of Sheikh Hasina in Satkhira in 2002.
The accused who got bail were advocate Abdus Sattar, Advocate Abdus Samad, Golam Rasul, Jahurul Haque, Rakib, Shahabuddin and Monirul Islam.
The trial court sentenced Abdus Sattar and Abdus Samad to four and a half years imprisonment and five others to four years imprisonment.
The HC bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir passed the order after holding hearing on the bail petitions filed by the accused.
A total of 18 accused who were convicted by the trial court recently filed bail petitions with the High Court. Decision on the bail petitions of the other 11 accused would be delivered on May 3, said lawyers concerned.
On August 30, 2002, Sheikh Hasina visited the house of a freedom fighter, after his wife was allegedly raped at Hizaldi village of Kolaroa upazila under Satkhira district.
While she was returning to Dhaka, BNP men kept a bus haphazardly on a road near the office of the Kolaroa upazila BNP. As Hasina’s motorcade reached the area, BNP men launched an attack on it, according to the case statement.
At least 12 people, including AL leaders and journalists, were injured in the attack, said Satkhira Court Inspector Amol Kumar Roy.
On September 2 of that year, Kolaroa upazila unit freedom fighters’ commander Moslem Uddin filed the case against 27 named and 70 to 75 unnamed accused. The accused included several BNP leaders and activists in Satkhira.
On February 4 this year, Satkhira’s Chief Judicial Magistrate Court convicted and sentenced 50 people in the case. Among them, 34 convicts, who were present in the courtroom, were sent to jail the same day. The others are on the run.
