The Dhaka Metropolitan Police have decided to take steps to ensure conviction of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jamaat leaders and activists on charges of arson and violence since 2013.
The DMP held a special emergency meeting on Thursday the investigation into and trial of the cases filed against BNP and Jamaat leaders and activists at times since 2013 on charges of arson and violence.
The meeting, which was attended by the officials of the eight crime divisions boss and officers-in-charge of 50 police under DMP designated for crime and operations at metropolitan and the police ranges, decided to analyse the selected cases regularly.
It also asked police officers concerned to take steps to ensure short intervals between trial dates for speedy disposal of the cases.
Experts said that the number of pending cases in the courts is increasing due to the failure to arrest a large number of warranted accused.
A high official in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police told the Daily Observer law enforcing agencies are continuing with their drives to arrest the warranted accused.
According to sources, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has 345 cases filed with different police stations against BNP and Jamaat from May to August this year. At least 2,000 people were arrested since May. However at least 80 per cent accused manage to get bail from the court.
According to police at least 5,000 activates of BNP and Jamaat who were involved with various crimes like on charge of arson and violence are still on the run. The DMP HQ order concerned authority to arrest the warranted accused.
Earlier in 2013 and 14, in their attempts to foil the last 11th National Parliamentary election and the process of the war criminals' trial process, BNP, Jammat and their allied forces, including fundamentalists and conspirators at home and abroad, carried out massacre through arson terrorism and vandalism countrywide.
They set hundreds of vehicles, government offices and educational buildings on fire while uprooted thousands of trees and railway tracks.
They burnt several hundred people alive by hurling petrol bombs into many running passenger buses when several thousand others also sustained burn injuries severely. Besides, several hundred engines and bogies of trains were also damaged.
According to DMP sources, 15 cases out of 25 cases initiated by DMP were filed during the BNP-Jamaat's violent movement in 2013. The remaining 10 cases were filed in 2015. Paltan police station has a maximum of six cases to start the investigation. Mugda and Khilgaon police stations have four each and Jatrabari police station has three cases. Besides, there are two cases each with Ramna, Motijheel, Demra and Sabujbag police stations. Mirza Fakhrul is accused in six of these cases.
On January 24, 2015, the police registered a case under the Explosives Act at Jatrabari police station. The accused in this case, which has been suspended by the order of the High Court, include BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Barkat Ullah Bulu, Amanullah Aman and Salahuddin Ahmed.
Besides, withdrawal of the suspension order has been sought in a case filed at Ramna police station in 2013 on charges of rioting, injuring government officials, and using force on a government official.
Sixteen BNP leaders including Mirza Fakhrul, Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Barkat Ullah Bulu, Amanullah Aman, Shaheed Uddin Chowdhury Anyi, and Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal.
