Four days into the issuance of a warrant on May 27, police are yet to arrest former Sonagazi Police OC Moazzem Hossain as the court order hasn't reached them yet.
A day after the Dhaka Cyber Tribunal ordered the now suspended inspector’s arrest, his counsel filed a petition with the High Court for anticipatory bail in a Digital Security Act case for filming and circulating a video statement of murdered Feni madrasa student Nusrat Jahan Rafi.
The hearing may take place between Jun 11 and 13, according to court officials.
The police, however, say that the arrest was not made as they were yet to receive the warrant.
It was sent to Sonagazi through the current OC Mainuddin, who says he has not received it.
However, Assistant Inspector General Sohel Rana at the police headquarters said: “Moazzem has been attached to police Rangpur range and the warrant is supposed to go to his new address.”
Deputy Inspector General Devdas Bhattacharya, who heads the Rangpur Range, says they too, are yet to receive it.
“We have not received the warrant and once it’s in our hands, we will take steps.”
Legal experts, however, say the arrest can be made even without the warrant.
“The usual practice is to make the arrest with a warrant. But if the police are aware of the arrest order than the suspect can be arrested under Section 54 [of the Code of Criminal Procedure]. Section 59 stipulates that civilians can apprehend the suspect and handover to police in such cases and OC Moazzem is a member of the police force,” said Supreme Court lawyer Md Aminul Islam.
Moazzem recorded Nusrat’s statement with his mobile phone after she brought charges of sexual harassment against Sonagazi Islamia Fazil (Degree) Madrasa principal SM Siraj-ud-Daula in March.
The video was released on social media amidst widespread protest over a deadly arson attack on Nusrat allegedly by followers of Siraj, who had already landed in jail on the sexual abuse charges, in April.
Moazzem, first transferred and then suspended along with three other police officials for negligence in handling the Nusrat case, had denied circulating the video on social media.
Someone had stolen the video from his mobile phone and released it on the Internet, he had said.
Following the incident, Supreme Court lawyer Sayedul Haque Sumon filed a complaint under the Digital Security Act, which was later accepted as a case.