15 DU Chhatra Odhikar Parishad members get bail

Court decision

A Bangladesh court has granted bail to 15 more activists from the Dhaka University unit of the Chhatra Odhikar Parishad in one of the two cases filed with the Shahbagh Police Station.

Dhaka’s Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Bilkis Akter granted the bail after hearing petitions on Monday.

The accused students are- Ariful Islam, Toslim Hossain Ovi, Tawhidul Islam Tuhin, Mamunur Rashid, Nazmul Hasan, HM Rubel Hossain, Yusuf Hossain, Mizan Uddin, Omar Faruk Jihad, Md Abu Kawser, Md Moazzem Hossain Roni, Shah Waliullah, Rakib, Sazzad Hossain Parvez and Md Rakib.

Bangladesh Gana Odhikar Parishad’s spokesperson and Joint Convener Abu Hanif confirmed the bail order to the media. Meanwhile, defense lawyers Khademul Islam and Md Parvez said the activists would be freed after securing bail in another case filed against them.

The court set November 20 to hear the bail petitions in the other case.

Earlier, Dhaka’s Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Syeda Jhuma granted bail to eight other activists, including the group’s President Aktar Hossain and General Secretary Akram Hossain, on Nov 7.

Shahbagh police arrested all 24 suspects in two cases filed by Chhatra League leaders on October 6. Metropolitan Magistrate Shahidul Islam of Dhaka CMM Court sent them to the jail the following day, setting October 11 for the hearing of the bail petitions.

On Oct 11, the court scrapped the bail petitions of all 24 suspects. It also granted single-day remand to interrogate Aktar and Akram in police custody on Oct 20. However, the court scrapped the remand petitions for the other 22 suspects.

On Oct 7, members of the Students’ Rights Council were holding an event in front of the Raju Statue at Dhaka University to commemorate the third anniversary of the murder of BUET student Abrar Fahad when they were attacked by the Chhatra League.

Members of the Chhatra League attacked the group again at Dhaka Medical College. Police from Shahbagh Police Station arrested the 24 activists with support from the Chhatra League afterwards.

Central Chhatra League leaders Nazim Uddin and Aminur Rahman filed two cases against the activists, claiming they had attacked Chhatra League members.

The parishad drew the attention of the media to its 2018 movement that forced the authorities to remove quotas from government jobs. The parishad went on to stage protests on other occasions. One of its leaders, Nurul Haque Nur, was elected vice-president of Dhaka University Central Students’ Union. He recently formed the party named Gana Odhikar Parishad with some other politicians. - Special Correspondent