A Chittagong court yesterday framed charges against Nayeb-e-Ameer of radical Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam Mufti Izharul Islam Chowdhury, his son Mufti Harun Izhar and seven others in a case filed in connection with the blast at Lalkhan Bazar Madrasa which left three students killed in October last year.
The court set April 28 for beginning the trial with the testimony of first prosecution witness.
Metropolitan Sessions Judge SM Mujibur Rahman indicted fugitive Izharul, also chairman of a faction of Islami Oikya Jote, and the others under the Explosives Act.
Kamal Uddin Ahmed, the public prosecutor, said the court also rejected the discharge pleas submitted by defence lawyers.
Several locally-made grenades blasted at a dormitory of Al Jamiatul Ulum Al Islamia, well-known as Lalkhan Bazar Madrasa run by Izhar, in the morning of October 7 last year leaving five students injured critically. Later three of the injured succumbed to injuries.
Four live grenades were recovered from the spot after the incident. Eighteen bottles of picric acid, used to amplify the magnitude of explosion, were also recovered from the residence of Izhar located on the madrasa premises.
Police filed three cases accusing nine persons for the blast, killing and recovery of picric acid on October 10.
Charge sheet in the blast case was submitted on February 10. The court accepted it on March 2.
The seven other accused in the cases are dinning super of the madrasa Munir Hossain, teachers Tafsir Ahmed and Abdul Mannan, and students Habibur Rahman, Abdul Hye alias Salman, Md Ishaq and Md Junayed.
Eight accused in the case were produced before the court during the indictment yesterday.
Izhar went into hiding soon after the incident. Later he secured bail from the High Court until March 27. He is facing arrest warrants in all the cases.