SP Jahangir remanded for four days in treason case

A Chattogram court has placed Superintendent of Police (SP) Mohammad Jahangir Alam on a four-day remand in a treason case over allegations of maintaining contact with Awami League leaders regarding plans for ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to return to Bangladesh in December.

Chattogram Metropolitan Magistrate Court-4 Judge Mohammad Mostafa passed the order on Sunday afternoon (November 15) after a hearing.

The police's Special Response Unit (SRU) had sought a seven-day remand for questioning Jahangir in connection with the investigation. The court granted four days and directed the authorities to submit a remand report within the next seven days.

Public Prosecutor Advocate Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan confirmed the order to journalists, saying the court had approved four days of the seven-day remand sought by the prosecution.

Jahangir, currently serving as SP of the Chattogram Range Reserve Force (RRF), was arrested from the Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) Officers' Mess late Saturday night.

The treason case was filed against him at around 10:30pm on Saturday with permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs. Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Abul Kashem Chowdhury of the RRF filed the case with Panchlaish Police Station.

According to police allegations, Jahangir had maintained contact with leaders of the banned Awami League and communicated with individuals regarding Hasina's reported plans to return to Bangladesh. He is also accused of sharing sensitive internal police information with Awami League leaders.

On November 10, a deputy inspector general (DIG) questioned Jahangir at his office after receiving preliminary information about the allegations. His personal and official mobile phones were seized that day and later sent to the Special Branch (SB) at Police Headquarters in Dhaka for forensic examination.

Meanwhile, Additional DIG (Operations) of Chattogram Range Shafizul Islam is conducting a departmental investigation into the allegations.

Sources said the case would be investigated by either the police's Special Response Unit (SRU) or the Counter Terrorism Unit.

Jahangir Alam belongs to the 28th Bangladesh Civil Service (Police) batch and joined the police force on December 1, 2010.

sks