The High Court today granted anticipatory bail to Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Advocate Zainul Abedin and its Secretary Barrister KM Mahbubuddin Khokon in three separate criminal cases.

The cases were filed with Ramna Police Station on charges of preventing law enforcers from discharging their duties during the agitation by BNP-led alliance on February 8 when a lower court convicted and sentenced BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia in a corruption case.

Today, the HC granted bail to Zainul and Khokon, also vice-chairman and joint secretary general of BNP respectively, till submission of the police report to the lower court in the cases.

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Sporadic violence on a day of alarm

The HC bench of Justice Obaidul Hassan and Justice Krishna Debnath passed the orders of bail after hearing separate petitions filed by Zainul and Mahbubuddin seeking anticipatory bails in the cases.

The accused BNP leaders also appeared before the HC bench for bail.

BNP leader Barrister Moudud Ahmed argued for them at the court.  

Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) yesterday requested Law Minister Anisul Huq to withdraw his comment on BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's lawyers over shifting her trial to old Dhaka central jail.

Terming his comment “regrettable and unfortunate”, SCBA president Advocate Zainul Abedin said, “He is a lawyer, the law minister and a responsible person. The countrymen, including his peers, do not expect such comment from him.”

“The law minister's comment was an insult to all lawyers of the country,” SCBA president also said at a press conference at the SCBA auditorium.

On Monday, pro-BNP lawyers said shifting the trial was a “misuse of judicial powers” by the law ministry and sought chief justice's intervention in this regard.

They submitted an application to the office of Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, requesting him to launch enquiries and take appropriate actions against the judicial officers “encroaching their legal boundaries at the instruction of the government”.

The minister, in response, refuted the allegations saying “I think, if they have made such allegations, I will say that they [Khaleda's lawyers] don't know law.”

SCBA Secretary Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon also spoke at the press conference.

After the SCBA press conference ended, pro-Awami League lawyers held another briefing and requested the SCBA not to create any controversy over the law minister's comment.

They said the gazette notification regarding Khaleda's trial in old Dhaka central jail was issued as per Section 9(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and is legal. 

The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has demanded release of students detained over recent protests and quota reform movement, withdrawing all cases filed against them.

“Many students have been arrested and they are now in jail as they participated in the road safety and quota reform movements; many are now on the run, which is very inhuman,” SCBA President Advocate Zainul Abedin said.

He was speaking to a press conference organized by the SCBA at its auditorium today.

“We have seen that a group of terrorists wearing helmets launched attacks on the students and even on the journalists. No legal action was taken against them and none of them were arrested yet, Abedin, also a leader of BNP, said.

He said, such actions of the government, despite realising the logical grounds of both movements, are contrary to the principles and standard of human rights.

The SCBA Secretary Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon, among others, spoke to the press conference.