Fakhrul sued in 92 cases in 10 years

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has been sent to jail at least five times in connection with 92 cases filed against him in the last 10 years, according to his lawyers and family.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader has to languish in the jail for 350 days since 2012 while he has to appear in Dhaka court every month.

Fakhrul appeared in the court on 9 December after he was picked up from his residence on the night of that day.

Later, he was shown arrested in a case filed over a clash that took place between police and BNP men in the capital’s Naya Paltan on 9 December.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, Supreme Court Bar Association former president and Mirza Fakhrul’s lawyer Zainul Abedin said the government has filed false cases one after another to politically harass the BNP secretary general. Most of the cases have been stayed by court orders, he added.

BNP standing committee member Mirza Abbas was also picked up from his residence at the dead of night following the clash between police and BNP activists on 7 December.

Bail pleas filed by Mirza Fakhrul and Mirza Abbas were denied at court twice since their arrest.

A bail plea was filed at Dhaka’s chief metropolitan magistrate court on Wednesday. The court set Thursday for hearing.

Mirza Fakhrul's lawyer said trial proceedings of 20-25 out of 92 cases against the BNP secretary general are underway and trial proceedings of remaining ones were halted by High Court orders.

Mirza Fakhrul has also been exempted from several cases by court orders. He was recently exempted from a sabotage case filed with capital’s Hatirjheel police station, the lawyer added.

The BNP leader's lawyer said police recently showed him arrested in a case filed with Paltan police station to keep him away from politics, he added.

However, Dhaka city public prosecutor (PP) Abdullah Abu told Prothom Alo the sabotage in the Paltan area is visible and attack was aimed at killing police.

Police filed no case against Mirza Fakhrul with political motive and cases were filed against him with specific allegations, the PP claimed.

Mirza Fakhrul appeared before Dhaka courts in 20 cases pending trial at least for 22 days over the last five months.

According to Masud Ahmed Talukdar and Syed Zainul Abedin, who represent Mirza Fakhrul in judicial court, the BNP leader has to appear in court for several days in a month, sometimes he has to go to court for five times a month.

He went to court once a week in 2013 and 2014, but he continued to appear in court following rules.

Review of cases filed against Mirza Fakhrul shows police filed most of the cases against this BNP leader other than two defamation suits.

Mirza Fakhrul faces charges of obstructing police from carrying out their duties, vandalising vehicles and sabotage activities. Seven of the cases, in which trial is underway, are filed in 2012 and the remaining cases are registered between 2013 and 2022.

According to Rahat Ara Begum, wife of Mirza Fakhrul, false cases have been filed against his husband one after another to keep him away from politics.

She said, “Even a case has been filed against him on allegation of torching a garbage truck. Is it believable that he would set fire to a garbage vehicle?”

“He is very ill. He has grown old. He has blocks in heart. He suffers from complications at the left side of head and other health conditions. We hope he would get justice at court and return to normal life quickly,” she added.

Mirza Fakhrul was made the acting secretary general of BNP after the death of then secretary general Khondkar Delwar Hossain in 2011. Mirza Fakhrul became the secretary general during the party’s national council in 2016 and he has been holding the post since then.

Mirza Fakhrul was involved in left-leaning politics at student life. He had joined the civil service and taught at several government colleges including Dhaka College after completing his education in Dhaka University. He quit the government job and became active in politics in the 1980s. He held the portfolio of a state minister during the BNP’s last tenure.

Regarding filing 92 cases against Mirza Fakkhrul in 10 years, Supreme Court lawyer Shadeen Malik told Prothom Alo it is very normal to think that apparently Mirza Fakkhrul is a dangerous criminal considering the volume of the cases, but he is known to be a gentleman and good politician in the society. It is inhuman to file so many cases against such an elderly person.