MP Liton denied bail

A Gaibandha court has yet again rejected bail petitions of Awami League lawmaker Manjurul Islam Liton in two cases filed for shooting a 10-year-old boy and vandalising a house in Sundarganj upazila on October 2.

The court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Waheduzzaman passed the order yesterday, Sirajul Islam Babu, counsel for Liton, told The Daily Star.

The lawmaker from Gaibandha-1, who is in jail, was not produced before the court.

The lawyer said he had submitted the petitions to the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Moinul Hasan Yousuf on October 21. Later, the court fixed yesterday for the hearing. Waheduzzaman took part in the hearing as Moinul was on leave.

A Gaibandha court had scrapped two bail petitions of Liton in the same cases and sent him to jail on October 15, a day after he was detained from Dhaka.

On the morning of October 2, Sourav Mia was shot in both legs allegedly by the lawmaker when the boy was taking a morning walk with his uncle at Gopalcharan village of Sundarganj upazila.

Saju Mia, Sourav's father, filed a case the next day.

The other case was filed on October 6 against Liton and nine of "his men" on charges of vandalising a house and looting furniture and corrugated iron sheets from its roof in a Gaibandha village soon after the shooting.

Meanwhile, Saju said the condition of Sourav, undergoing treatment at Rangpur Medical College Hospital, was improving.

Bablu Kumar Shah, a physician at the hospital, said the victim was able to walk on his feet. He expressed hope that the school-goer would be released soon.