‘Absconding’ lawmakers break law

Speculations run rife, even within the ruling Awami League, over two of its absconding members of parliament - Amanur Rahman Khan (Rana) from Tangail-3 constituency and Manjurul Islam Liton from Gaibandha-1 - for their involvement in two separate cases.
Ruling party leaders are unhappy that these MPs are on the run, breaking the law despite being lawmakers.
A member of AL advisory council and a presidium member told Prothom Alo that absconding like this is a political loss for them, and harmful to the party as well. "They should respect the law and surrender," he added.
Amanur has been absconding for around one year, while Manzurul has been on the run for a week.
The police said they could not find Manzurul Islam though an attempt-to-murder case was filed against him for shooting 10-year-old Shahadat Hossain.
However, Manzurul contacted Prothom Alo twice after the shooting incident over phone saying that he was in Dhaka and trying to manage bail.
Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan recently told newsmen that MP Manzurul was given time to surrender, otherwise legal steps would be taken against him.
Prime minister Sheikh Hasina on 4 October told a press conference that Manzurul would not be spared.
Absconding MP Amanur Rahman is on the wanted list of the police for his alleged involvement in the murder of local Awami League leader Faruk Ahmed.
MP Amanur, who has been on the run for around one year, turned up in parliament once in June and signed the attendance book to save his membership.
However, the police are yet to arrest him. The government has not made any comment so far about Amanur’s arrest.
When Faruk’s widow Naar Ahmed and her children called upon prime minister Sheikh Hasina at Gono Bhaban, the prime minister assured them that Faruk’s killers would be caught and tried.
When asked about Amanur and Manzurul, law minister Anisul Haque told Prothom Alo that their government was committed to establishing the rule of law. "Whoever commits a crime, whether an MP or not, must face justice," he added.
Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury told Prothom Alo that all are equal before the law and there was no law preventing MPs from being arrested.
Law enforcement agencies need the speaker’s prior permission to arrest an MP from the Jatiya Sangsad (national assembly) area.
Besides, the agencies need to inform the speaker if they want to arrest an MP during the parliamentary session, said Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury.