MP Anwarul Azim murder: Jhenaidah AL GS Mintu remanded
Jhenaidah district unit Awami League general secretary Saidul Karim Mintu has been placed on an eight-day remand in a case filed over abduction and murder of Anwarul Azim Anar, a member of parliament (MP) from Jhenaidah-4 constituency.
Tofazzal Hossain, the additional chief metropolitan magistrate of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate’s (CMM) court, passed the order on Thursday, when the police produced him before the court with a 10-day remand plea.
Sub-inspector Jalal Uddin of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s (DMP) Crime Information Division confirmed the development to Prothom Alo.
He appeared to have been involved in the murder of MP Anar, as per the confessional statement of another accused Shimul Bhuiyan
In the remand appeal, the police informed the court that Saidul Karim Mintu appeared to have been involved in the murder of MP Anar, as per the confessional statement of another accused Shimul Bhuiyan.
According to his confessions, the mastermind of the killing, Aktaruzzaman, had discussed with Saidul Karim Mintu over messaging app WhatsApp, about a financial transaction subject to execution of the murder.
Another ruling party leader of the district, Kamal Ahmed Babu, told the police that he traded pictures related to the grisly murder with Shimul Bhuiyan and was supposed to handover an amount of money to him (Shimul Bhuiyan) after collecting it from Saidul Karim Mintu on 23 May.
Against such a backdrop, they sought permission from the court to interrogate him in remand for ten days.
According to a source of Detective Branch (DB) police, Saidul Karim Mintu was detained from the premises of a ruling party leader’s residence in the capital’s Dhanmondi area and was later taken to the DB office on Tuesday.
MP Anwarul Azim was killed in a flat in Kolkata’s New Town area on 13 May. Four people have been arrested so far from Bangladesh in connection with the murder, while two others were arrested from Kolkata and Nepal.
Questioning the arrestees, the police came to know that MP Anwarul was killed over a smuggling-related dispute. US expat Md Akhtaruzzaman alias Shahin, brother of Kotchandpur municipality mayor, has been identified as the mastermind of the gruesome murder.
The intelligence officials involved in the investigation said Akhtaruzzaman hired a killer with Tk 50 million to kill MP Anwarul Azim Anar. Once notorious extremist leader Shimul Bhuiyan played a key role in the killing. Jhenaidah Awami League general secretary Saidul Karim’s name came up while questioning Shimul.