Court decides on March 6 about charge against Rony

A Dhaka court will announce its decision on March 6 whether it would frame charges against Bakhtiar Alam Rony, son of ruling Awami League lawmaker Pinu Khan, in connection with a double murder in the capital April last year.

“Frustrated over post-midnight traffic”, Rony fired random shots from his sports utility vehicle on New Eskaton Road on April 14 leaving a rickshaw-puller and an auto-rickshaw driver dead, according to the charge sheet. 

Hearing a discharge petition filed by the defence, the Second Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court yesterday set the date for passing the order.

During the hearing, Rony's lawyer Kazi Nozib Ullah Hiru told the court that his client had been implicated in the case as part of a conspiracy to harass him.

“Rony was not in the vehicle during the time of occurrence. So, I appeal to the court to clear my client of the murder charge,” he said.

However, Additional Public Prosecutor SM Zahid Hossain prayed to the court to frame charges against the accused since, he said, the charges brought against him were preliminarily proved.

Rony was present at the court on a wheelchair, as he has been suffering from spinal cord complications, court sources said.

Detectives on July 21 pressed murder charges against Rony for shooting the two persons dead.

The incident at first did not draw much attention. Media reports on Rony's involvement in it caused a huge public outcry.

On August 13 last year, a Dhaka court accepted the charges against the accused.