A court in Dhaka has framed charges against eight members of banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) in a case over the murder of Jagriti Publications publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan.
Dhaka Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal Judge Majibur Rahman passed the order on Sunday (Oct 13)
The eight ABT men are Moinul Hasan Shamim alias Sifat alias Samir alias Imran, Md Abdus Sabur alias Abdus Samad alias Sujan alias Raju alias Sad, Khairul Islam alias Jamil alias Rifat alias Fahim alias Jisan, Md Abu Siddique Sohel alias Sakib alias Sajid alias Shahab, Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon alias Shahriar, Md Sheikh Abdullah alias Jubayer alias Jayed alias Javed, Syed Ziaul Hoque, a suspended major of Bangladesh Army who is known as Sagar alias Istikhakh alias Borobhai in the organisation, and Akram Hossain alias Hasib alias Abir alias Adnan alias Abdullah.
The court also issued arrest warrants against sacked army major Syed Ziaul Hoque, the mastermind of the killing, and Akram as they are on the run.
It also fixed Nov 18 for the next hearing in the case.
Publisher Dipan, son of Prof Abul Kashem Fazlul Huq of Dhaka University, was hacked to death in his office on the second floor of Aziz Supermarket at Shahbagh in the city on Oct 31, 2015.
A case was filed with the capital's Shahbagh police on the next day and later it was transferred to Detective Branch.
Police on Nov 15, pressed charges against these eight ABT men in the case.
On Oct 30, 2018, the charge-sheet in the case was sent to the Home Ministry for approval before submission to the court as the case was filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act.