Five years ago, he was charged with attempt to murder after an attack on members of a family who were allegedly supporters of a candidate in the Union Council (UP) elections.
The opposing side reportedly used knives and sharp weapons in the attack. Later a case was registered and after completing the investigation, the police filed a charge sheet in the court. The court formally initiated the trial against the accused.
The case, which is currently awaiting testimony of witnesses to begin, has recently been recommended for withdrawal on political grounds.
However, the complainant has opposed this recommendation in the court and said that the case is not politically motivated.
The complainant has also given written application to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs and the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The case is currently being heard in the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate in Chattogram, with the next hearing scheduled on April 5.
According to case records, the incident took place on December 26, 2021, in Pentrisha area of Chunati union under Lohagara upazila.
During the 2021 UP elections, supporters of candidate Jahangir Alam reportedly became victims of attack by the rival party.
The attackers, identified as Zain Alam’s associates, reportedly used knives, sharp weapons and sticks.
Noor Ahmed, Bashir Ahmed and Noorunnahar suffered serious injuries in the attack. Additionally, 10 others including Anwar, Rehena Akhtar, Asmaul Husna and Dilwara Begum were also injured.
After the incident, Tanjila Sultana, wife of candidate Jahangir Alam, has registered a case at Lohagara police station.
After completing the investigation, Inspector Noor Ahmed of Chattogram District Detective Branch filed the charge sheet in the court on 16 April 2023.
30 people have been named as accused in the chargesheet, including Sirajul Islam Choudhary, Rezaul Bahar, Zain Alam, Irfanul Haq Choudhary and Mahbubur Rehman.
All the accused have been arrested in connection with the case and are currently on bail.
On February 24, the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate framed charges against all 30 accused and ordered the commencement of trial. The case is now awaiting the testimony of witnesses.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to withdraw politically motivated cases filed between January 6, 2009 and August 5, 2024.
Many cases have already been recommended for withdrawal under this policy. After the application by the accused, it was recommended to withdraw the Lohagara case also.
Upon learning of the development, the complainant filed an application in the court in February, stating that the accused had caused serious injuries to her family members by using sharp weapons, knives and firearms.
The application further states that the accused had obtained a recommendation for deportation from the Home Ministry by presenting misleading information and terming the case as politically motivated. The complainant argued that withdrawal of the case would deprive her of justice.
Tanjila Sultana told Prothom Alo, “The accused attacked our family members during the tenure of the then Awami League government because we did not support them in the UP elections. Many of the accused also have cases pending against them for attacking the anti-discrimination student movement. They attacked us over small issues during the previous government. This is not a political attack.”
They further demanded that the withdrawal recommendation be rejected and the accused be brought to justice.
However, accused Sirajul Islam claimed to Prothom Alo, “The case has been registered against us to harass us politically.”
He described himself as a former BNP worker. Responding to a question, he said, “I have no association with Awami League members. It is possible that people associated with Awami League may have visited my school and I may have photographs with them.”
When contacted, Chattogram District and Sessions Judge Court’s Public Prosecutor (PP) Ashfaq Hussain Chaudhary told Prothom Alo, “Most of the cases of political harassment were registered either by the police or by leaders and workers of the previous Awami League government. The Lohagra case appears to involve an attack motivated by anger over not supporting a particular candidate in the UP elections. The prosecution will investigate the case seriously.”