UNB, Cox’s Bazar :
Police arrested chairman of Naikkhongchhari upazila in Bandarban Tofail Ahmed, who is the prime accused in cases filed over the arson attack on Buddhist houses and pagodas in Ramu of Cox’s Bazar, from a residential hotel in the capital early Monday.
A police team conducted a drive at Sundarban Hotel in the city’s Panthapath area around 3am and picked up Tofail, also a Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami leader, said Naikkhongchhari upazila nirbahi officer M Shahidul Islam.
He also said Tofail was scheduled to attend a training programme in the capital. Naikkhongchhari upazila vice-chairman Kamal Uddin said the law enforcers also launched a drive at Tofail’s upazila headquarters residence two weeks ago to arrest him but in vain.
On October 1 last year, the Local Government Division suspended Tofail Ahmed as the upazila chairman as he was charge-sheeted accused in two criminal cases. However, the High Court stayed the suspension order on January 3 last following a petition filed by Tofail.
Some miscreants and fanatics carried out the gruesome attack on the houses and temples of the Buddhist community in Ramu, Ukhia and Teknaf upazilas on September 29 and 30 in 2012, following a Facebook post that had humiliated the holy Quran.
Eleven Buddhist temples and 30 houses of the minority community were vandalised during the violence.
The following day, another seven temples and 11 houses of the Buddhist community were also vandalised and torched in Ukhia and Teknaf upazilas of Cox’s Bazar.
Police arrested chairman of Naikkhongchhari upazila in Bandarban Tofail Ahmed, who is the prime accused in cases filed over the arson attack on Buddhist houses and pagodas in Ramu of Cox’s Bazar, from a residential hotel in the capital early Monday.
A police team conducted a drive at Sundarban Hotel in the city’s Panthapath area around 3am and picked up Tofail, also a Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami leader, said Naikkhongchhari upazila nirbahi officer M Shahidul Islam.
He also said Tofail was scheduled to attend a training programme in the capital. Naikkhongchhari upazila vice-chairman Kamal Uddin said the law enforcers also launched a drive at Tofail’s upazila headquarters residence two weeks ago to arrest him but in vain.
On October 1 last year, the Local Government Division suspended Tofail Ahmed as the upazila chairman as he was charge-sheeted accused in two criminal cases. However, the High Court stayed the suspension order on January 3 last following a petition filed by Tofail.
Some miscreants and fanatics carried out the gruesome attack on the houses and temples of the Buddhist community in Ramu, Ukhia and Teknaf upazilas on September 29 and 30 in 2012, following a Facebook post that had humiliated the holy Quran.
Eleven Buddhist temples and 30 houses of the minority community were vandalised during the violence.
The following day, another seven temples and 11 houses of the Buddhist community were also vandalised and torched in Ukhia and Teknaf upazilas of Cox’s Bazar.
