Court to hear petition filed for showing ex-Jubo League leader arrested on June 16

A virtual court in Dhaka will hold on June 16 the hearing on a petition submitted for showing expelled Jubo League leader Khalid Mahmud Bhuiyan arrested without his presence before the court in a money laundering case through videoconferencing.

Metropolitan Magistrate Md Ziaur Rahman today set the date after CID Sub-Inspector Rashedur Rahman, also the investigation officer of the case, placed the petition before the court.

On that day, the court will also hear the prayer filed seeking seven-day remand for Khalid through videoconferencing linking to an email with the concerned jail authorities custodian for the accused in the case.

The Supreme Court on June 7 cleared the barriers and directed all magistrates across the country for holding virtual hearings on remand prayers through videoconferencing with concerned jail authorities.

During the hearing, the conducting magistrate will witness the accused through videoconferencing and hold a hearing on the remand prayer, said the gazette notification issued on June 7.

Before issuance of the gazette notification, it was a mandatory provision of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) that during the hearing of a remand prayer, the accused must be produced before the court.

On June 7, CID Inspector Mohammad Ibrahim filed the case with Motijheel Police Station against Khalid for laundering around Tk 8.5 crore to Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand till December 31 of 2019.

Three more named and several other unnamed people were made accused in the case.

On February 23, CID pressed charges against Khalid and five others in another money laundering case.

He was indicted in a drug case on February 26.

Rab arrested Khalid from his Gulshan residence on September 18 last year. Police seized one shotgun, two pistols, 57 rounds of shotgun bullets, 53 rounds of pistol bullets and 585 pieces of yaba pills from his residence.

Later, five cases, including a money laundering case, were filed against Khalid with Gulshan and Motijheel Police Stations. He was remanded for several days in the cases.

Earlier, police also pressed charges against him in the cases filed under the Arms and Narcotics Control Acts.