BANGLADESH

Police submitted their first progress report on investigation into the missing of BNP leader M Elias Ali with a Dhaka court on Sunday.Banani Thana Inspector Kazi Mainul Islam submitted the report with Metropolitan Judge Moniruzzaman on Sunday noon.
The progress report stated that police sent wireless massages in every police stations of the country as part of their initial step to find out Elias Ali and his driver.
Meanwhile, an application has already been placed to BRTA authority for verifying the ownership the abandoned private car seized by police from city’s Mohakhali area.
Earlier, BNP Organizing Secretary of Sylhet Division and former MP M Elias Ali went missing along with his car and driver in the early hours of Wednesday.
Tahsina Rushdi Luna, wife of Elias Ali, lodged a General Diary (GD) with Banani Thana over the incident on the same day.
The High Court on Thursday issued a rule on the government to explain within 10 days why it should not be directed to produce Ilias Ali before the court.
The HC bench comprising of Justice Farid Ahmed and Justice Sheikh Hasan Arif issued the rule following a writ petition by the BNP leader`s wife, Tahsina Rushdi.

The HC bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik and Justice Jahangir Hossain Selim also issued a suo moto order on the government asking it to find Ilias Ali on the same day.

Meanwhile, a Dhaka court also directed Banani police to submit reports to it every 48 hours on the progress of the investigation into the whereabouts of Ilias Ali.

The postmortem of the bodies of journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Mehrun Runi has been completed at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) morgue on Thursday afternoon.
Forensic Department chief of DMCH Kazi Golam Mokhlesur Rahman conducted the post mortem. Assistant professors of the same department Kamrul Hasan Sardar, Parvez and Iftekhar assisted him.
Golam Mokhlesur said, “We have kept necessary evidences as the bodies have been decomposed. These would be sent to chemical laboratory of Mohakhali. If they had fed something before killing, it would be disclosed in the report.”
Shariful Islam, brother-in-law of Sagar, said, “Two and half months have been passed. But, police could not do anything. We hope something may be revealed this time.”
Nowsher Alam, younger brother of Merun Runi, said, “I don’t think they can find out anything, which they could not in last two and half months.”
Earlier, a team of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) stared exhumation of the bodies from 1015am and completed at 1107am.
The exhumation has started in presence of Investigation Officer and RAB ASP Jafarullah and RAB director (legal and Media Wing) Commander M Sohayel.
On Tuesday, Judge Bikash Kumar Saha of Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court ordered exhumation of the bodies of the journalist couple to ascertain the reason of their murder.
Executive Magistrate M Shahiduzzaman was appointed for supervising the exhumation.
Later, the bodies were buried again at Azimpur graveyard in the afternoon.
On February 11, senior reporter of ATN Bangla Runi and her husband Sagar Sarowar, who was news editor with Maasranga Television, were murdered at their west Rajabazar rented house in the city.
Nowsher Alam Roman, younger brother of Runi lodged a case accusing some unidentified persons on February 12.
On February 16, the twin murder case was transferred to the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) for fair investigation.
On April 18, the High Court directed the authority concerned to transfer the twin murder case of journalist couple Sagar and Runi to Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) after the detective police had admitted their failure in this regard.

The 47th birth anniversary of Sheikh Russel, the youngest son of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and brother of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is being observed Tuesday in tears.
Russel, born this day in 1964, was killed along with his father and most other family members on August 15, 1975 during a putsch by a group of disgruntled military-men.
The ruling Awami League has chalked out daylong programmes to mark the day.
Sheikh Russel Jatiya Shishu Kishore Parishad began the programme of the day hoisting the organization’s flag at around 7am.
The elaborate programmes include placing floral wreaths at the portrait of Bangabandhu at the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in Dhanmondi and offering prayers at the grave of Sheikh Russel.
A discussion and prize-distribution programme was arranged at Bangabandhu International Conference Center at around 10am. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was scheduled to attend the programme.
The city Awami League will hold a discussion at Bangabandhu Avenue at 3pm.
Awami League acting general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif, in a statement published Monday, urged the party leaders and activists to observe the day with due solemnity.

Awami League (AL) lawmaker and former state minister for home Tanjim Ahmad Sohel Taj resigned as parliament member on Monday.A confidential parliament source confirmed about the matter on Monday.
According to source, Sohel’s additional personal assistant Abu Kawsar sent the resignation letter to the speaker’s office at about 1030am.However, acting parliament secretary Mahfujur Rahman said that he knew nothing in this regard.
Earlier, Sohel Taj, son of country`s first Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmed, sent a letter to cabinet secretariat asking why a huge amount of money was sent to his account after two and a half years and why no gazette notification on his resignation was issued.
Meanwhile, he demanded that the government take back around Tk 40 lakh deposited in his account in remuneration and allowances for the post.
Earlier on June 1, 2009, he stepped down as state minister for home affairs about five months into his appointment.
Sohel Taj, son of country`s first Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmed, submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her Office on the same day.
Later, he was made a minister without portfolio.
Sources said Sohel Taj did not specify any reason except `personal ground` for his resignation.

A Dhaka Court has indicted journalist Shafiq Rehman, daily Naya Diganta editor Alamgir Mohiuddin and its publisher Shamsul Huda for libel. The Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrates court of Hakim Shahriar Mahmud Adnan framed charge against the three on Thursday.
Bangladesh Quoran Shiksha Mission president Maolana Abu Bakar Siddique, who is also Awami Olama League vice-president, filed a case accusing the three for hurting religious sentiment and defaming Islam on Mar 6 in 2011.
According to the case statement, Naya Diganta ran a column on Feb 25 in 2011 written by Shafiq Rehman titled Not a chance editor, a chance adviser quoting former chief justice ABM Khairul Haque. In another column in the same newspaper, Shafique Rehman identified Khairul Haque as Chance Muhammad, it was alleged in the case.
It was alleged in the case that Shafiq Rehman criticised prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) by writing the column and hurt emotions of the Muslims and the religion Islam was defamed.
But the judge took into cognisance only the charge of the defamation.
All the three accused pleaded their innocence after the charge was read out before them.
A T M Golam Daud argued for the plaintiff while Abdullah Mahmud Hasan stood for the accused.

At least 10 people were killed and several others injured in storms and lightning strikes triggered by pre-monsoon rains at different parts of the country from Tuesday night to Wednesday afternoon.

According to reports, four people were killed in lightning strikes in Bagerhat, Kishoreganj and Habiganj districts on Wednesday while six died in house-collapse incidents as a Nor'wester lashed Thakurgaon and Dinajpur districts on Tuesday night.

In Thakurgaon, five people were killed and over 50 injured as the Nor'wester swept through Pirganj upazila.

Pirganj upazila executive officer (UNO) Abdur Rouf told that the storm hit the upazila around 7:30pm and continued for 30 minutes.

The deceased were identified as Abdul Halim (26), son of Sohrab Ali, Rina Akther (7), daughter of Yousuf Ali, and 'Sakibul' (9), son of Mohasin Ali of Jagannathpur village under Boirchuna union, and Sharifunnessa (70), wife of late Shakir Mohammad of Hazipara village, and Halima Banu (50) of Chandaria village under Jabarhat union.

Of the injured, 27 were admitted to Dinajpur and Rangpur medical college hospitals.

The Nor'wester damaged at least 5,000 houses and crops on a vast tract of land, the UNO said adding that at least 25 villages of Boirchuna and Jabarhat unions were badly affected by the storm. A large number of trees and electric poles also got uprooted.

In Dinajpur, Rezia Begum (40), wife of Moksed Ali of Barapukuria area of Parbatipur upazila, died instantly as a wall of her house collapsed on her during the storm.

In Bagerhat, a college student was killed in lightning strike at Nalua village of Chitalmari upazila on Wednesday around 1:30pm. A thunderbolt struck Ramjan Sheikh (20), son of Amjad Sheikh, of the village when he was collecting fallen mangoes.

In Kishoreganj, two people died in lightning strikes at the district's Tarail and Karimganj upazilas when they were working in the fields at noon.

The deceased were identified as Bassu Mia (60) of Mougaon village under Tarail upazila and Kajal Chandra Debnath (35) of Panahar village under Karimganj upazila.

In Habiganj, one was killed and six more injured as a thunderbolt struck them while working on a cropland at Jatradighi in Baniachang Haor area on Wednesday noon.

Officer-in-charge of the Baniachang Police Station Nirmalendu Chakrabarti told that the injured were rushed to Habiganj Sadar Modern Hospital where doctors pronounced Imran Mia (16), son of Khasru Mia of Amirkhali village of the upazila, dead.

Police have arrested the disgraced army officer who allegedly led the looting of Tk 20 million from a Chittagong shrine while being the commander of a RAB unit.

The former RAB-7 chief, discharged lieutenant colonel Zulfikar Ali Majumdar, has been the prime accused in the case after the incident at Talsara Darbar Sharif in Chittagong during a raid on Nov 4.

A police officer in Dhaka said Thursday that he was arrested from a house in the city's Maghbazar area.

"He was in a house in Bhuter Goli and we took him into custody at around 4am," Ramna OC Shah Alam told .

A Chittagong police officer, Anwara Police Station OC Abdus Salam, also participated in the raid and was the one who identified Zulfikar.

A case was filed against the commander and nine of his subordinates on Mar 13 this year. They were accused of breaking open the almirah of the shrine during a raid on Nov 4, 2011 and stealing Tk 20 million in cash. The RAB team arrested five Myanmar nationals, whom they handed over to police, but did not say anything about the money.

The accused law enforcers were withdrawn from their duties after a preliminary investigation.