B'desh court orders report submission by Nov 28 in case against Hasina

A Bangladesh court on Saturday ordered the police to submit the investigation report of a murder case against former premier Sheikh Hasina and 23 others by November 28, according to media reports.

The murder case was filed over the death of an 18-year-old college student in Mirpur, Dhaka, during a crackdown by the Hasina-led Awami League government on student-led mass protests that led to her ouster.

On August 5, Hasina, 77, fled to India in the face of the violent protests against a controversial quota system in government jobs, which led to the death of hundreds of people since mid-July.

Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Md Ziadur Rahman ordered the submission of the probe report by November 28 after the case was presented in his court, The Daily Star newspaper reported.

The case was filed on August 15 by the victim's brother, who asserted that the accused were directly involved in or facilitated the violence that led to his brother's death and injuries to other students.

Apart from Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader, former law minister Anisul Huq, and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun are among those accused in the case.

Hasina is now facing 225 cases, including 194 for murders, 16 for crimes against humanity and genocide, three for abduction, 11 for attempted murder and one for an attack on a Bangladesh Nationalist Party procession, according to the report.