Attack on Hasina motorcade: Appellate Division stays bail of seven convicted BNP supporters

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday stayed a High Court order granting bail to seven people convicted in a case filed for an attack on the motorcade of then opposition leader and current Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, in Satkhira in 2002. 

SC Appellate Division Justice, Hasan Foez Siddique, issued a stay order after hearing an appeal filed by the state.

All seven convicted are supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and were sentenced in the case, by a lower court, earlier this year. 

A full hearing of the state's appeal against the High Court order will be heard by the full bench of the Appellate Division on 30 May. 

The High Court on Tuesday granted four months bail to Advocate Abdus Sattar, former general secretary of the Satkhira District Bar Association, and Abdus Samad, a Supreme Court lawyer, and Golam Rasul, Zahirul Islam, Rakib, Shahabuddin, and Monirul Islam.

In Thursday's hearing, Attorney General AM Amin Uddin and Additional Attorney General SM Munir represented the state, and Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon was the lawyer for the BNP leaders and activists.

Hasina's motorcade was attacked on 30 August 2002 in front of the Kalaroa Upazila BNP office in Satkhira, when the BNP-led four party alliance government was in power. Hasina survived the attack unscathed, but several people, including former MP Mujibur Rahman, were injured.

On the same day, Kalaroa Upazila Freedom Fighter, Commander Moslem Uddin, filed a case for the attack. Upon investigating the case, police filed a charge sheet against 50 people in 2015, including against then BNP MP, Habibul Islam.

According to the charge sheet, the attack was carried out with the intention of killing Sheikh Hasina.

Following the trial in the case, the Satkhira Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court sentenced all 50 accused, on the 4th of February this year.

The court sentenced Habibul Islam to 10 years in prison under various sections of the law. Advocate Abdus Sattar and others accused, were sentenced to different terms. The accused appealed the sentence at the Satkhira District Sessions Judge's Court. The appeal is yet to be heard.