Ministry recommends withdrawal of 4,000 cases
Dhaka Metropolitan Public Prosecutor (PP) Advocate Omar Faruk Faruki has recommended the withdrawal of nearly 4,000 cases of political harassment cases from police stations in Dhaka to the ministry. After the previous Awami League government came to power in 2009, these cases were filed on charges of sabotage surrounding the opposition party’s political program.
The Awami League government was also accused of filing cases of sabotage without a program at times. Since the Awami League has been in power for 15 consecutive years, there was no opportunity to withdraw it. Rather, before every national election, it targets the leaders and activists of the opposition political party and presents evidence in many cases. Hundreds of leaders and activists have been sentenced. Since 2009, 5,929,492 people have been accused in 1,42,983 cases across the country until July 5. Most of them are BNP leaders and activists.
Sources said that most of the recommended cases are at the trial stage after the charge sheet was filed. The remaining cases are under investigation. These cases were filed between 2009 and 2024.
After the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, the current interim government led by Dr. Muhammad Yunus took the initiative to withdraw political revenge cases. As part of that step, the police first submitted a final report to the court seeking the acquittal of 3,056 accused in 228 sabotage cases filed by the anti-discrimination student movement from July 17 to August 5. When the court accepted the final report, the cases were closed and the accused were acquitted.
Where leaders and activists of BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and various opposition political parties and student movements were accused. Then on September 22, the government formed two committees at the district and ministry levels to withdraw political revenge cases and set a deadline of December 31 for applications. After that, applications began across the country. The place of application for police stations in Dhaka district and Dhaka metropolis is the Dhaka Deputy Commissioner’s Office.
Sources said that the Dhaka Metropolitan Public Prosecutor has recommended the withdrawal of about 4,000 cases to the ministry, but the Dhaka Deputy Commissioner’s office has not received even 1,000 applications for withdrawal.
In this regard, Omar Faruq Faruqi said that the applications for withdrawal of cases have not been received by the Deputy Commissioner’s office. However, he has collected a list of political revenge cases on his own initiative. Through which he has recommended the withdrawal of about 4,000 cases and sent them to the ministry. He further said that the cases include leaders and activists of BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and various opposition political parties as well as ordinary people. The work of collecting the list is still ongoing, which will be sent to the ministry with recommendations once completed.
Meanwhile, it is learned that after August 5, the courts have settled most of the political cases pending in the Dhaka CMM, Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge and CJM and Dhaka District Judge courts and acquitted or discharged the accused. Sources said that in this way, about 2,000 cases have been settled. Only cases pending by the High Court and under investigation are left. The Public Prosecutor’s Office is recommending withdrawal.
According to BNP office sources, 59,29,492 people have been accused in 1,42,983 cases against leaders and activists across the country since 2009 until July 5. In the three months from October 28, 2023 alone, about 70,000 leaders and activists were accused in 1,645 cases across the country. BNP claims that among the cases, there are 17,583 cases in 50 police stations in Dhaka Metropolitan City.
It has been found that before the last national election, from August to December 7, 2023, about 845 leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliates and Jamaat-e-Islami and its affiliates were convicted in 55 cases of sabotage in police stations under Dhaka and Dhaka Metropolitan City areas by various verdicts of the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Dhaka Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dhaka District and Sessions Judge, and Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge.
It is also worth noting that during the 2009-13 Awami League-led grand coalition government, 7,198 cases were recommended for complete or partial withdrawal on the grounds of ‘political harassment’. A significant portion of these were murder cases. And during the 2001-06 BNP-Jamaat coalition government, 5,888 cases were completely withdrawn and some accused were acquitted in 945 cases in the same manner.
Do Follow: greenbanglaonline24
