The New Nation - Internet Edition

Our Correspondent, Barisal

Ministry of home affairs issued letter-asking grantors to produce absconding bailed accused or to suffer punishment considering upcoming local government polls. A lot of advocates, people representatives and influential persons may suffer the punishment as grantors of the absconding bailed accuses if this instruction followed hardly.

Khan Sayeed Hassan, Deputy Inspector General of police in charge of Barisal range and commissioner of Barisal Metropolitan Police and Advocate Shahidul Islam, secretary of Barisal district Bar Association, acknowledged the facts.

They said that the letter issued on Monday July 14 and copies distributed to concerned authorities on Thursday July 17, 2008 on the basis of the decisions approved in the meeting of the home ministry held on May 15, 2008 considering the control over law and order during up coming local government elections including city corporation, municipalities and upazilas.

Sources said grantors who were usually advocates, ward commissioners, UP chairmen and influential persons of the society, have to sign a bail-bond by giving assurance to produce the bailed accused before the law for facing trial under due process according to section 514 of penal code.

Non-bail able warrants against the absconding bailed accused would be issued as the violator of the bail-bond.

Grantor would be liable if the bailed accused became absconding and have to pay bail-bond money usually varied from Tk. 5,000 to 1,00,000.

Immovable properties of the grantors would be confiscated to realized the bail-bond money or they have to suffer imprisonment if failure to produce the bailed accused under their grantee.

Grantor would only be acquitted from charges only in case of death of him or the absconding accused, said the legal experts.

Hayatul Islam Khan, assistant commissioner of BMP and Advocate Abdur Rahim Badsha, district public prosecutor in charge, said that about six hundred bailed accused in Barisal district became absconding and attempt to take punishments against their grantors and completing trial in absentia would be done.