Court orders newspaper summoning Hasina, others

Staff Reporter :

A Dhaka court has ordered the publication of a public notice in national newspapers summoning former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and 255 others to appear before it in a sedition case linked to alleged anti-state activities and a plot to topple the interim government.

The order was issued Thursday by Metropolitan Magistrate Jewel Rana’s court after police reported that the accused could not be arrested.
The court directed that the public notice be published to summon the absconding individuals and fixed 11 November for the next hearing.

Md Salahuddin, the bench assistant of the court, confirmed the development. He said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) filed a petition to show 24 accused as arrested, which the court approved. Bail pleas submitted by their lawyers were rejected, and the 24 were sent to jail.

Those shown arrested include former MP Sabina Akter Tuhin, Md Ibrahim Khalil Bipul, Md Abdus Sabur, Mst Sanowara Khatun, Mehedi Hasan Akash, AKM Akteruzzaman, KM Rashed, Mst Merina Khatun Meri, Sushanta Bhowmik, Nizam Bari, Jahangir Alam, Sheikh Anichuzzaman Anich, and several others.

According to the case documents, CID Assistant Superintendent Md Enamul Haque filed the sedition case on 27 March, accusing 73 people, including Sheikh Hasina, of conspiring against the state during a virtual meeting of the “Joy Bangla Brigade” on 19 December 2024.

After investigation, the CID submitted a charge sheet on 30 July, naming 286 accused, which the court accepted on 14 August, issuing arrest warrants. Later, on 11 September, the court imposed a travel ban on the accused.

The case alleges that during the Zoom meeting, chaired by Dr Rabbi Alam, vice-president of the Awami League’s US chapter, Sheikh Hasina delivered anti-state remarks and instructed her followers to overthrow the interim government led by Dr Muhammad Yunus. The speech was later circulated widely on social media platforms across the country.