The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

A charge sheet was submitted to court yesterday in sensational August 21 grenade attack case making 28 accused including former education minister Abdus Salam Pintu and banned Islamist outfit Harkatul Jihad leader Mufti Hannan.

The charge sheet was submitted after long four years of barbaric and heinous attack on Awami League rally at Bangabandhu Avenue in the city on August 21, 2004 that left 24 people dead and several hundred seriously injured.

The Criminal Investigation Department of police submitted the charge sheet mentioning the names of 28 persons as accused including former deputy education minister of the BNP-led four-party alliance government Abdus Salam Pintu, his younger brother Moulana Tajuddin alias Taj and Harkatul Jihad leader Mufti Hannan.

Fazlul Kabir, Senior ASP of CID, submitted the 500-page charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Dhaka. Along with the charge sheet, some 5000-page documents were also submitted to the court.

Sources at the CMM Court said perhaps it is the biggest charge sheet in the history of Bangladesh. No such lengthy charge sheet was ever submitted to the court in the country's history.

Other accused are Mufti Hannan's younger brither Mofizur Rahman Ovi, Moulana Abu Taher (Dhaka), Sharif Shahidul Islam Bipul (Sylhet), Moulana Abu Sayeed alias Daktar Abu Zafar (Gafargaon), Mufti Moyeen alias Abu Jandal (Narail), Abul Kalam Bulbul (Jhenidah), Jahangir Alam (Kushtia), Arif Hasan alias Suman alias Abdur Razzaque (Dhaka), Jewel (Narayanganj), Hosayn Ahmed alias Tamim (Faridpur), Rafiqul Islam Gazi alias Shafiq Sabuj (Magura) and Ujjal Hossain alias Ratan (Magura).

Besides, two other accused of the case are now detained in Tihar Jail of India. They are two brothers-Anisul Mursalin alias Shuja and Mohibul Muttaqin alias Shahin (Faridpur).

Among the accused, 14 have been arrested so far and now in jails, while the six accused are absconding. They are Moulana Tajuddin (Tangail), Iqbal (Jhenidah), Moulana Abu Bakar (Barisal), Moulana Liton alias Zobayer alias Delwar (Gopalganj), Khalilur Rahman Khalil (Magura) and Jahangir Hossain alias Jahangir Badar (Dohar, Dhaka).

ASP Fazlul Kabir was the last police officer who investigated the case. Earlier, seven police officials of the Detective Branch and CID investigated the case.

In the charge sheet, the investigation officer mentioned the names of 412 witnesses including Awami League President and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Eight of the arrested accused in the case gave confessional statements to the court. They are Mufti Hannan, his brother Mohibullah, accomplices Shahedul Alam Bipul, Moulana Abu Sayeed, Abul Kalam Azad Bulbul, Jahangir Alam, Arif Hasan alias Suman and Rafiqul Islam Sabuj.

Sub-Inspector Sharif Ahmed filed a case with the city's Motijheel Police Station on August 22, 2004 in connection with the incident of grenade attack at Bangabandhu Avenue. The responsibility of investigation into the case was given to the CID on August 23, 2004. The first investigation officer of the case was Ashrafuzzaman, the then AC of DB.