Jatiya Party leader Ruhul Amin Hawlader today filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the Election Commission (EC) order that rejected his nomination on loan default ground.
Hawlader, a presidium member of JP and also a lawmaker, submitted the petition seeking HC directives upon the EC for accepting his nomination.
His lawyer advocate Ashik Al-Jalil told The Daily Star that the EC cancelled his nomination for Patuakhali-1 following a letter issued by the Bangladesh Bank stating that he is a loan defaulter of Shahjalal IslamiBank.
And Shahjalal Islami Bankhas allowed Hawlader to reschedule his bank loan but the EC did not considerthe matter when it heard the JP leader’s appeal filed challenging the rejection order of the returning officer, Jalil said.
The central bank has no authority to announce a person loan defaulter, the lawyer said adding that the bank which gives the loan only can declare a person loan defaulter. And Shahjalal IslamiBank has not declared Hawladeras a loan defaulter, he said.
Therefore, the EC’s decision to cancel his nomination is “illegal”, the lawyer added.
The HC may hear the petition later in the day.
Hawlader’s nomination was rejected by the returning officer concerned on December2 during scrutiny.
In a latest development, JP Chairman HM Ershad has made Hawlader his special assistant.
Jatiya Party leader Ruhul Amin Hawlader today filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the Election Commission (EC) order that rejected his nomination on loan default ground.
Hawlader, a presidium member of JP and also a lawmaker, submitted the petition seeking HC directives upon the EC for accepting his nomination.
His lawyer advocate Ashik Al-Jalil told The Daily Star that the EC cancelled his nomination for Patuakhali-1 following a letter issued by the Bangladesh Bank stating that he is a loan defaulter of Shahjalal IslamiBank.
And Shahjalal Islami Bankhas allowed Hawlader to reschedule his bank loan but the EC did not considerthe matter when it heard the JP leader’s appeal filed challenging the rejection order of the returning officer, Jalil said.
The central bank has no authority to announce a person loan defaulter, the lawyer said adding that the bank which gives the loan only can declare a person loan defaulter. And Shahjalal IslamiBank has not declared Hawladeras a loan defaulter, he said.
Therefore, the EC’s decision to cancel his nomination is “illegal”, the lawyer added.
The HC may hear the petition later in the day.
Hawlader’s nomination was rejected by the returning officer concerned on December2 during scrutiny.
In a latest development, JP Chairman HM Ershad has made Hawlader his special assistant.
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Four university students remain missing since they were allegedly picked up by plainclothes men in the capital's Farmgate area on Saturday, the day before national election.
Their families yesterday held a press conference at Crime Reporters' Association Bangladesh, demanding safe return of the youths.
The missing are: Abu Khaled Mohammad Jabed, 25, a third year student of Bangla at Asian University; Borhan Uddin, 26, English student at Stamford University; Rezaul Khalek, 24, final year student of Pharmacy at Manarat University; and Syed Maminul Hasan, 27, former student of a Unani Ayurvedic Medical College.
“We are very anxious about their fate, as we have been out of contact with them for two days,” said Jabed's brother-in-law Yeasin Karim at the press conference.
He urged law enforcers to rescue the youths or to produce them before the court if they were detained for any crime.
Some plainclothes men identifying themselves as law enforcers dragged them out of a bus in Farmgate on their way home in Mirpur-1 after shopping at Aziz Super Market, Yeasin said quoting a friend of theirs who was also in the bus but escaped detention.
“We contacted local police stations and other wings of law enforcement agencies but all denied picking Jabed up,” he said.
The families drew attention of national and international human rights organisations to be vocal for their release.
Contacted, Abdul Baten, additional commissioner (detectives) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police said they did not detain the youths.
Mufti Mahmud Khan, Rab's Legal and Media wing director also said they did not carry out any drive in Farmgate on that day.
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Bangladesh government has opened a media centre at a luxury hotel in Dhaka to relay election information to journalists on the day of December 30 election.
Top officials of the information and foreign ministry were present at the launching of the media centre at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka in the morning.
Abdul Malek, secretary to Ministry of Information said, the centre will provide all types of information till December 31 midnight to foreign and local journalists and election observers.
Md Shahidul Haque, foreign affairs secretary, said two hundred foreign observers and 50 overseas journalists who will be catered information from the centre.
Besides, the centre will provide security and visa related necessary information as well as online facilities to the overseas journalists and election observers.
The election result provided by the EC will also be displayed through Bangladesh Television (BTV) at the media centre.
Five officials and staffs of the information ministry will work at the media centre round the clock. The media centre will keep communication with the EC through two hot lines.
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Main opposition BNP today claimed that over 9,200 of its activists were arrested since the declaration of election schedule on November 8.
“Our activists were sued in 806 ghost cases since then,” Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, senior joint secretary of the party, said at a press conference at Nayapaltan.
He claimed, 12,588 activists of BNP and its alliance Jatiya Oikyafront were injured in 2,716 incidents of attacks throughout the country in the last 22 days.
So far, eight opposition activists have been killed in election violence, he added.
“The government is applying all its power to oust BNP and Jatiya Oikyafront from the election,” Rizvi claimed. “Our activists are targeted from rally footages.”
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The families of two teenagers killed in Mohammadpur during a clash of Awami League factions ahead of the general election have been robbed of justice.
The family members of one of the victims said police submitted the final report in the case without talking to them. The report mentioned no clash even though it was widely covered by the media at that time. It termed the incident an “accident”.
Councillor Tarequzzaman Rajib of ward-33 also threatened the father of one of the victims not to file a murder case, they said.
A case was filed after the November 10, 2018, incident and the father of one of the teens was made the plaintiff.
The father maintains he did not file the case and that the signature on the case document could not be his since he is illiterate. He said Councillor Rajib put a gun to his head and told him to do as he said after the incident.
The families opened up to this paper only after Rajib was arrested this week.
On the morning of November 10, 2018, a procession of vehicles, largely comprised of flatbeds, with supporters of AL leader Sadek Khan was going towards the AL Dhanmondi office to buy nomination paper for Sadek’s candidacy in the polls.
Mohammad Sujon, 19, and Arif Hossain, 14, were on one of the pickup trucks when the procession was attacked allegedly by the men of rival AL leader and then lawmaker Jahangir Kabir Nanak.
During the melee Sujon and Arif fell off the vehicle and the driver, trying to avoid the brick chunks being hurled at the pickup, reversed and ran the two over, according to case documents, news reports, witness accounts, and statements of the families.
Sujan and Arif died in hospital.
Arif’s father Faruk Hossain was taken to a community centre in Mohammadpur when he was on his way to the hospital. He was confined there for 12 hours by Rajib’s men, Faruk told The Daily Star.
Late at night, Rajib, reportedly Nanak’s ally, at the community centre told Faruk to go to the police station to talk about getting the body of his son.
Faruk then went to the police station, gave his details, and told the officials there what he knew about the incident. He had no idea that police were filing a case making him the plaintiff. The police officials there asked him to identify the body at the Suhrawardy hospital, Faruk said.
On his way to the hospital from the police station, two men stopped him near Shia Masjid and took him to Rajib’s home.
Rajib told him at gunpoint to do as he said regarding the matter, Faruk told The Daily Star.
“You wouldn’t get anything if you file a murder case. Instead, you will be harassed and face the same consequences as your son. You are from Lalmonhon of Bhola and so am I. Do what I say. You will get a good compensation,” Faruk quoted Rajib as saying.
Faruk eventually identified his son’s body the next day.
Faruk said, “After the incident, I thought it was police who were the plaintiff in the case.
“This is my NID, sir. See, I can’t sign,” Faruk showed his NID to this correspondent which had his thumb print.
Faruk said not a single police officer talked to him about the investigation since then.
Sujon’s uncle Md Riaz told The Daily Star last night that the police never talked to them either.
He said councillor Rajib had promised them compensation and jobs for family members but he never delivered.
Sujon’s family did not know that the final report was submitted. They heard it first from The Daily Star correspondent.
After “investigating” the case for 11 months, police submitted the final report terming the incident an “accident”.
Police had arrested convener of Jubo League’s Adabar Thana unit Arifur Rahman Tuhin in connection with leading the attack but in the final report police said they found no evidence of Tuhin’s involvement.
Rajib, on behalf of then MP Nanak, had given Arif’s family Tk 30,000 and Sujon’s family Tk 25,000 as burial cost.
After the incident, AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader said the prime minister directed the authorities concerned to submit a probe report over the incident within two days.
Whoever is found involved would be given exemplary punishment, he had said, adding that the prime minister wanted to know “who destroyed the peaceful election environment”.
Sub-Inspector Mukul Ranjan of Mohammadpur police station, investigation officer (IO) of the case, said they submitted the final report of the case in the first week of this month as they could not find any evidence or witnesses.
Police also could not identify the pickup truck and its driver.
In the final report, police said the two factions of the ruling party came “face to face” near Mohammadi Homes Ltd on November 10 when the unidentified driver reversed in a hurry and could not see what was behind him. This led to the two getting run over.
The SI in his investigation found no evidence of the clash. He only said the two faction came “face to face”. The media, however, had extensive coverage of the incident.
They reported that the attackers, armed with hammers, sharp weapons and brick chunks, swooped on the procession of vehicles.
The IO said said Faruk did not know what had actually happened and had “filed the case” based on hearsay.
Taking to this newspaper, the SI claimed that he did not find anything in CCTV footage and no local wanted to be a witness.
Asked why the IO never contacted Faruk, the IO first claimed that he had contacted him but later said they could not reach him.
The IO claimed that Faruk had indeed filed the case.
At one stage of the conversation with this correspondent, the IO said he had written the final report with direction from a superior officer of Tejgaon Division Police.
Anisur Rahman, deputy commissioner (Tejgaon division) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told The Daily Star that he had no knowledge about the development of the case as he joined the division only a few months ago.
“I will have to see the documents,” he added.
In November last year, Nanak said he had nothing to do with the attack on the procession.
Sadek had said that he did not want to blame anyone and demanded a proper investigation.
The Daily Star could not reach Nanak and Sadek for comments over the last few days.
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Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader today said the process to form the new government is likely to be completed by January 10.
Obaidul Quader came up with the information while talking to reporters after placing wreaths at the portrait of Bangabandhu in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi in the city, marking Awami League's landslide victory in the 11th national elections.
He also said the gazette notification will be published within one to two days and then the newly elected members of parliament will be sworn in.
"After the oath taking, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will meet the President. Then, the President will request the Prime Minister to form the government," he added.
"It is the concern of the Election Commission. Everything will be done according to the constitution. If any candidate fails to take oath, the election commission will arrange necessary steps according to the constitution. A new schedule will be announced for a by-election to the constituency," he said while answering a question about Oikyafront's decision not to take the oath.
Quader said, "I still believe they (Oikyafront) will not disobey the verdict of the country's people. Earlier, they made a mistake by boycotting the 2014 election. Whether they are satisfied or dissatisfied, it's their party matter. But those who have been elected this time will not show disrespect to the people's verdict by not taking oath."
"Many democratic countries have started congratulating Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. If they do not participate in the democratic process, democracy will not be halted for them," he added.
Meanwhile, the senior Awami League urged the party's leaders, activists and supporters not to be revengeful to the opposition and behave carefully.
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