Take militants, dangerous criminals to court in shackles: Police to prison authorities

Police have asked the prison authorities to take militants and notorious criminals to court, with iron shackles around the ankles. This directive was made just days after two death row convicts were snatched away from the court premises in Dhaka.

The two are Moinul Hasan Shamim alias Sifat Samir, from Madhabpur village in Chhatak upazila, Sunamganj and Md Abu Siddique Sohel alias Sakib from Bheteshwar village in Aditmari upazila in Lalmonirhat.   

They were awarded death sentence in murder cases filed over the murder of Jagriti Prokashoni’s Foysal Arefin Dipan and blogger Avijit Roy.

Deputy police commissioner (prosecution) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Jashim Uddin told Prothom Alo that the request has been made on Monday night in a letter to the prison inspector general.  

The letter read as per the prison rules, dangerous criminals, militants and the accused in several cases will have to be taken to the court, with iron shackles around their ankles. Two death row convicts were snatched away from the court as shackles were not placed around their ankles.

In the letter, police urged the prison authorities to take the ‘serious accused persons’ to court by a separate prison van.   

Two militants, who were awarded death sentence in murder cases filed over the murder of Jagriti Prokashoni’s Foysal Arefin Dipan and blogger Avijit Roy, were snatched away from court premises in Old Dhaka on Sunday.