Innocent man jailed: Writ seeks removal of the judge, state counsel, IO of the case

A writ petition was filed seeking the removal of a judge, state counsel and investigating officer (IO) of a narcotics case for wrongfully jailing another person instead of the real accused.

The court of Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge KM Imrul Kayes on 17 January sentenced one Alamin of Chandpur instead of Alamin from Narayanganj to six years rigorous imprisonment in a case on charge of possessing 20,000 pieces of yaba tablets.

Lawyer Bodiuzzaman Topader, on behalf of Alamin of Chandpur, filed the writ petition with the High Court on Tuesday, seeking punitive measures against the three aforementioned persons.

In the petition, the victim seeks the removal of the judge, state counsel and IO of the case for delivering the wrong verdict, providing misinformation to the court and wrong investigation respectively.

The hearing on the petition will be held at the HC bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and SM Moniruzzaman next week, the defence lawyer said.

Badiuzzaman Topadar told TBS that the court had convicted Alamin of Chandpur and awarded him jail terms in the case. The investigating officer in the case from Khilgaon police station had filed a charge sheet against an innocent person instead of the real accused.

He said the IO of the case did not properly investigate the mobile number and address of the real accused. The judge later handed down the verdict based on the testimony of the investigating officer in the case.

"Later, my client learnt that he was sentenced to six years in prison although he is not the accused in the case. The house of the real accused in the case is in Narayanganj and my client's house is in Chandpur," the lawyer said.

Later, Alamin of Narayanganj, the real accused in the case, surrendered.