A Dhaka court has sent content creator Tawhid Afridi to jail after rejecting his bail petition in a murder case filed over the killing of Asadul Haque Babu during the anti-discrimination movement.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Hasib Ullah Piyas passed the order following a hearing on Saturday.
Earlier, after the end of his five-day remand, CID Inspector Khan Md Erfan, the investigation officer of the case, produced him before the court and sought his detention in jail.
In the petition, the IO stated that the accused’s mobile phone, CPU, and iMac had been seized and were under forensic examination. He also mentioned that during the anti-discrimination student movement, Tawhid made provocative statements and carried out activities opposing the movement. Important information and data were reportedly obtained during his interrogation, which are now being verified.
Tawhid is the son of private TV channel Mytv chairman Nasir Uddin Sathi, who is also an accused in the same case.
The petition further said it was essential to keep the accused in jail for the sake of investigation, as releasing him on bail could lead to his absconding or disruption of the probe.
Tawhid’s lawyer applied for bail, which was opposed by the prosecution. After hearing both sides, the court rejected the bail plea and ordered his imprisonment.
CID police arrested Tawhid Afridi from Barisal on August 24. The following day, the court placed him on a five-day remand.
According to the case statement, on August 5, 2024, Asadul Haque Babu took part in the July movement in Jatrabari. Around 2:30pm, he was shot by bullets allegedly fired by the accused. Doctors declared him dead after he was taken to hospital.
Following the incident, on August 30 last year, Babu’s father, Zainal Abedin, filed a murder case at Jatrabari police station, naming former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 25 others as accused. In the FIR, Nasir Uddin was listed as the 22nd accused, while his son Tawhid was named as the 11th accused.
Earlier, on August 17, police arrested Nasir Uddin Sathi from Gulshan in the capital in the same case. The next day, the court placed him on a five-day remand, and on August 23, he was sent to jail after the remand ended.
