AL councillor-elect, 7 others sent to jail for beating up cops

The newly elected councillor of ward-23 under Dhaka North City Corporation was sent to jail today, hours after police arrested him on the charge of physically assaulting two police officers.

Councillor Shakhawat Hossain, who was backed by Awami League in Saturday’s polls and is also the general secretary of the ward, was picked up from the city’s Khilgaon area on Monday night after Sub-Inspector Abdul Majid of police’s Special Branch filed a case, police said.

Shakhawat’s son and six others accused in the case were also arrested.

Metropolitan Magistrate Sadbir Yasir Ahsan Chowdhury sent all of them to jail after police produced them before the court with a forwarding report this afternoon.

In the report, police appealed to the court to imprison the accused until the investigation of the case is completed.

The seven others accused are the councillor’s son Zunaid Hossain Farhan, Marufur Rahman Enam, Walid Hossain Ahad, Milton Gazi, Mokhlesur Rahman Mantu, Alamgir Hossain Sarder and Mustafizur Rahman.

In the case statement, Majid stated that the accused tried to drive him and three other policemen away when they were standing near Pallima Sangsad’s west gate to collect intelligence.

“We told them that we are members of police and performing our duties but they tried to force us to leave the area. At one stage, they started beating us, leaving me and Assistant Sub-Inspector Kamal Hossain injured,” he said in the case statement.

The accused assembled illegally and barred police personnel from discharging their duties, the SI said, adding they were treated for their injuries at Central Police Hospital in Rajarbagh.