Law
week
Some ex-ministers face interrogation
Several former ministers of the previous BNP-led alliance government are likely to face interrogation in the sensational Chittagong arms haul case, said the public prosecutor (PP) of the case. Meanwhile, investigators of the Chittagong arms haul case were quizzing two former NSI chiefs--Maj Gen (retd) Rezzaqul Haider Chowdhury and Brig Gen (retd) Abdur Rahim--in Chittagong. Quoting arrested former NSI director (security) Wing Commander (retd) Sahab Uddin's confessional statement, PP Kamaluddin told The Daily Star that Abdur Rahim held several meetings with representatives of the UAE-based business firm ARY group in Dubai and in Dhaka. -The Daily Star, May 19, 2009.
JS body slams Petrobangla for 'inefficiency'
A parliamentary body strongly criticised officials of Petrobangla for not working "efficiently" in producing gas at different gas fields. The parliamentary standing committee on estimate at a meeting asked Petrobangla to work in a "warlike situation" and increase volume of gas production. The committee also asked officials of the power and energy ministry to submit in two weeks a report on how to overcome energy crisis. Petrobangla on the other hand sought relaxation of present rules and regulations in exploring gas in a bid to materialise its specialised fast-track project under which it projected to produce as much as 118 to 128 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd). -The Daily Star, May 19, 2009.
HR Watch for disbanding DGFI, Rab
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has recommended the disbanding of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), terming them symbols of abuse and impunity in a report. The New York-based HRW said if the two forces are not disbanded they should be made to comply with existing laws and international human rights norms. In the 76-page report titled "Ignoring Executions and Torture: Impunity for Bangladesh's Security Forces," HRW Asia Director Brad Adams said "The very forces tasked with upholding the law and providing security to the public have become well known for breaking the law in the gravest manner without ever facing any consequences." -The Daily Star, May 19, 2009.
Act fast to save rivers
A parliamentary body expressed concern over river pollution and asked the industries and environment ministries to take immediate measures to save the rivers, especially the Buriganga, Turag, Balu and the Shitalakhya, from pollution. The parliamentary standing committee on land ministry also asked the ministries to take measures so that industrial waste, especially of tanneries, do not end up in the rivers. The committee will sit with high officials of industries and environment ministries in its next meeting to discuss the issue in detail. The body in its meeting yesterday also asked director general (land record) and deputy commissioners concerned to conduct a fresh survey to identify areas of rivers and canals across the country that have been gobbled up by encroachers so that they could be recovered. -The Daily Star, May 18, 2009.
Supplementary plea filed for HC stay on govt notice
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia filed a supplementary writ petition with the High Court (HC) seeking a stay order on the government's show cause notice over her cantonment house. The HC might hold hearing of this petition along with a pending writ petition filed by Khaleda challenging the legality of the government notice asking her to leave the cantonment house. The HC bench of Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed and Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury permitted Khaleda to swear affidavit through her authorised person to file the petition along with her pending writ petition. The bench on May 12 accepted Khaleda's writ petition, as three judges of the HC felt embarrassed and one judge refused to hear the same petition. -The Daily Star, May 18, 2009.
HC orders re-probe
The High Court declared illegal Jahangirnagar University authorities' decisions of exonerating drama and dramatics faculty member Sanowar Hossain Sunny from sexual harassment charges and suspending six students on charge of assaulting him. The HC bench of Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain and Justice Quamrul Islam Siddiqui also directed the JU authorities to hold a fresh enquiry into the incident and take action against the alleged persons. The bench insists that neutral persons conduct the fresh enquiry in line with the HC's recent guidelines on sexual harassment. -The Daily Star, May 18, 2009.
JMB has at least 50 bomb experts now
Law enforcers suspect there are at least 50 operatives in the militant Islamist organisation Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) who can make bombs, and almost all of them were trained by now detained Jahid Hossain Sumon alias 'Boma Mizan'. 'Boma Mizan', key-explosives expert of the banned outfit, has already admitted to Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) that his prime job was to train the operatives in making bombs and grenades. "We don't have the actual number of JMB members trained in explosives but information given by JMB members arrested on different occasions suggest the number is not less than 50," a top Rab official told The Daily Star. -The Daily Star, May 17, 2009.
BDR mutineers' trial acid test for govt
The government's ability to hold a credible and fair trial of war criminals depends largely on how appropriately it handles the trial of BDR mutiny, says Amnesty International Asia Pacific Programme Director Sam Zarifi. Zarifi suggests that the trial of BDR mutiny should not be held in court martial but in legitimate civilian process. It is also necessary to ensure special training to all the people involved in war criminals' trial for a fair and credible outcome in international standard, he adds. "If the government can't handle that trial [of BDR mutiny] appropriately, it's difficult to see how it can handle the events of the 1971 war which are a hundred times more complicated and at this point the evidence is much more questionable," he observes. -The Daily Star, May 16, 2009.
Corresponding with the Law Desk
Please send your mails, queries, and opinions to: Law Desk, The Daily Star 19 Karwan Bazar, Dhaka-1215; telephone 8124944,8124955,fax 8125155; email: dslawdesk@yahoo.co.uk,lawdesk@thedailystar.net
