A Dhaka court on Monday sentenced 10 activists of BNP-led-18 party alliance to five-year imprisonment in a case filed under the Explosive Substances Act in 2013.
After examining records and evidences of the case, Judge Md Amirul Islam of the Dhaka’s Ninth Metropolitan Special Tribunal handed down the sentence in the presence of seven convicts in a packed courtroom.
The court also fined them Tk3,000 each, in default of which they will have to serve three months more in jail.
The convicts are Sumon Chandra Dey,25; Md Jashim Uddin,21; Md Aminul Islam,22; Abdur Rahman,55; Md Sohel Miah,26; Md Liton Ali,42; Md Kaisar Hossen, 23; Md Shohid Ali,36; Md Jewel,23 and Md Mohsin,28.
Of them, seven are now in jail while Jashim, Mohsin and Shohid are on the run.
The punishment of the fugitives will be effective from the day of their arrest or surrender, the judge said in his judgment.
The court, however, acquitted 14 accused including Nazrul Islam, Shamim Hossen, Siraj Ali and Firoz Khan of the charges as allegation brought against them were not proved.
Earlier, the prosecution and defence completed their arguments and the tribunal recorded statements of 10 prosecution witnesses including complainant of the case.
According to the prosecution, a group of 18-party alliance activists brought out a procession during hartal on November 26, 2013 in Dhaka's Bhasantek area and threw crude bombs on the on-duty police members, leaving several injured.
Jahidul Islam, sub-inspector of Kafrul police station, filed the case against the accused under Explosive Substances Act.
On March 31, 2014, SI ABM Asaduzzaman, submitted the charge sheet to court against 30 accused. The tribunal framed charges against the accused on April 13, 2017.