Palak remanded for six days over two cases

Police have remanded former state minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak for six days in connection with two murder cases during the Anti-discrimination Student Movement.

The court issued a remand order for three days in a case filed at the Sutrapur Police Station over the deaths of Ikram Hossain Kawser, a student of Kabi Nazrul Islam Government College, and Omar Faruque, a pupil of Shaheed Suhrawardy Government College. The court also placed Palak on another three-day remand over the killing of Shumon Shikder, who was killed in front of Badda’s Fuji Tower, reports bdnews24.com.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Moinul Islam ordered Palak to undergo questioning in police custody over the cases on Sunday.

The court also sent Dhaka University Chhatra League General Secretary Tanveer Hasan Saikat and former MP and freedom fighter Ahmed Hossain to jail after they were remanded in a case under the Explosive Substances Act at the Lalbagh Police Station.

Md Toufiqul Islam, office assistant to Magistrate Moinul, told bdnews24.com: “The hearing began two and a half hours before the scheduled time. The judge delivered the remand order within 15 minutes of the hearing.”

Palak was brought to the court premises under tight security around 6am.

Advocate Saddam Hossain, the defendant’s lawyer, said: “Zunaid Ahmed Palak has previously been remanded for 17 days in various cases. I told the court that police were unable to discover any information during the questioning of those cases. He is being harassed by being remanded repeatedly.”

“These are political harassment cases. My client has no involvement in these cases. I am applying for bail and the scrapping of the remand order.”

“Palak was brought to the court at 6am. I reached the court premises before 6am. I stay in the court from morning till night because there is no certainty of who will be brought to the court at what time. Palak’s remand order was supposed to be cancelled today, that’s why I arrived before 6am,” he added.

Sutrapur Police Station Sub-inspector Md Abul Kalam Azam, the investigating officer in one case, sought a 7-day remand after showing Palak arrested in the Sutrapur case on Aug 26.

On Aug 27, Additional Chief Magistrate Mohammad Tofazzel Hossain set the hearing date for the cancellation of the remand after seeing that he was remanded in another case.

On Sunday morning, Magistrate Moinul placed him on a three-day remand after showing him arrested following the cancellation of the remand order for the killing of Khalid Hasan Saifullah, a student of Ideal College.

According to the case dossier, protesters of the quota reform movement took a stand in front of Kabi Nazrul Islam Government College and Shaheed Suhrawardy Government College on Jul 19.

At that time, Ikram and Omar were allegedly shot to death by the leaders and workers of the Awami League, Chhatra League, Jubo League, Swechasebak League, Mohila League and their affiliate organisations.

The former state minister of ICT is the seventh accused in the case as the ‘facilitator and planner’ of the attack.

Meanwhile, Badda Police Sub-Inspector Md Rezaul Karim sought a seven-day remand for questioning Palak after showing him arrested in the murder case of Shumon Shikder.

According to the case dossier, Shumon left home to go to his workplace on Jul 19. As soon as he arrived at the Pragati Sarani road on the north side of Fuji Tower, the accused shot him with illegal weapons with the intent to kill him. Shumon died following the attack.

Shumon’s mother filed a murder case for the death of her son at Badda Police Station on Aug 20. Palak has been made the sixth accused in the case.