The Dhaka Central Jail authorities on Tuesday released acting Bangladesh Nationalist Party secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on bail after receiving the Supreme Court’s order that had granted him six weeks bail to avail ‘advanced medical treatment’.
Deputy jailer Sarbattam Dewan told New Age Fakhrul was freed around 7:10pm from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University hospital where he was admitted on June 13 with different ailments on an order issued by the High Court on June 9.
Soon after Fakhrul’s release, he went to the United Hospital in Gulshan for medical checkup, said one of his followers.
On Monday, the Appellate Division granted Fakhrul’s interim bail following a recommendation, made by five specialised doctors of the BSMMU, that the patient should ‘go to an advanced centre where intervention for carotid lesions may be possible.’
When enough plaque builds up to reduce or disturb blood flow through one’s carotid arteries, physicians call this problem carotid artery disease. Carotid artery disease is a serious health problem because it can cause a stroke.
Fakhrul was freed on bail over six months since he was arrested from the National Press Club premises on January 6.
He was implicated in seven cases, and later was remanded in custody for interrogation for the first time since his six-time previous arrests from May 2012 to till January 6, this year, said the party activists closed to him.
After his arrest in January, the police had alleged that he ordered, abetted and instigated unidentified party men to explode several crude bombs, vandalise five buses and a police motorbike and set them on fire at seven places in the capital on the eve of January 5, the day that BNP had observed as Democracy Killing Day.
Of the seven cases, a High Court bench granted Fakhrul’s bail in one case in April, and issued rule asking the government why he would not be granted bail in three other cases.
On June 18, the bench finally granted him bail in the three cases disposing of the rule.
Another bench on June 21 granted Fakhrul’s bail in the rest three cases considering his ailment.
The government had filed appeals separately seeking stay on each High Court orders granting Fakhrul’s bail.
On June 28, the government filed appeals seeking stay of the High Court’s 21 bail orders, preventing Fakhrul’s release. The appeals were filed after the Appellate Division had upheld Fakhrul’s bail in the four cases he was granted bail on April 16 and June 18.
On receipt of medical board’s report that was submitted to the court following its order, the Appellate Division finally on July 13 granted Fakhrul’s bail for six weeks.
The four-judge bench headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha had also directed Fakhrul to surrender in the trial court after completion of the treatment within the stipulated period.
The BNP leader faces 79 cases filed on different periods and most of the cases are under investigation.
-With New Age input
