Trial of 46 Opposition Leaders
HC starts hearing govt petition against stay order
The High Court yesterday started hearing a government petition seeking vacation of the court's earlier order that had stayed the operations of a Dhaka court dealing with an arson case against 46 opposition leaders.
During the hearing, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said the government had constituted the Speedy Trial Court-5 of Dhaka as per provisions of relevant law, which had framed charges against the 46 accused.
The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) has given judicial power to Magistrate Harun-or Rashid to conduct the speedy trial court in due process of law, he said.
Following a writ petition, the HC stayed for eight weeks all the functions of Speedy Trial Court-5 on August 6. It also issued a rule upon the authorities concerned to explain why the CMM Court's decision to give judicial powers to the Trial Court to conduct the case should not be declared illegal.
Ahsanul Karim, a counsel for the writ petitioner, opposed the government petition, saying the CMM had no power to give judicial power to any magistrate for dealing with the case, and it was illegal to give power to Magistrate Harun-or Rashid to conduct the Speedy Trial Court-5.
The HC bench of Justice Naima Haider and Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar adjourned the hearing till today.
The 46 opposition leaders including BNP Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir were charged with torching a bus near the Prime Minister's Office on April 29.
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