9 arrested in connection with the murder of a lawyer during violence in Bangladesh

DHAKA: At least nine people have been arrested in connection with the killing of a lawyer during violence in Bangladesh’s southeastern port city of Chattogram, police said on Saturday. They were arrested after a case was filed against 46 people, mostly cleaners, belonging to the Hindu minority community, for their involvement in the killing of deputy public prosecutor Saiful Islam, who was in his early 30s, in clashes between security personnel and other Hindu supporters on Tuesday -Community leader Chinmoy Krishna Das after he was denied bail by a Chattogram court and sent to jail.
Das, Bangladesh Speaker Sammilita Sanatani Jagran Jote was arrested in a sedition case at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport here on Monday.
“Saiful Islam’s father filed the case last night and named 46 people,” said Abdul Karim, officer-in-charge of the port city’s Kotwali police station.
Karim said most of the accused were residents of the city’s Sebok Colony, a hub of cleansers for the Hindu community.
He said nine of the accused had been arrested and a manhunt was underway to arrest the others.
He said the defendants were identified through CCTV footage of the courthouse, the scene of the November 26 violence.
Police said a person identified as Chandan Das was the main accused as he was seen cutting down the lawyer with a sharp weapon.
The incident sparked nationwide outrage. Lawyers and political groups took to the streets demanding strict punitive measures against Islam’s murderers, while some groups called for a ban on ISKCON Bangladesh.
However, ISKCON Bangladesh said Das was expelled from the organization long before his arrest, adding that ISKCON was not involved in the murder or violence.