Former Chief Justice A B M Khairul Hoque has been released on bail after spending more than a year in custody. His lawyer, Motahar Hossain Saju, said he was released from Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj around 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, August 19.
Khairul Hoque served as Chief Justice from September 30, 2010, to May 17, 2011. The Appellate Division bench under his leadership issued a ruling on May 10, 2011, striking down the Constitution’s Thirteenth Amendment.
Police arrested Khairul Hoque from his residence in the capital’s Dhanmondi on July 24 last year. He was later shown as arrested in a case over the killing of Jubodal activist Abdul Kayum Ahad in Dhaka’s Jatrabari during last year’s July mass uprising. He has since been held in custody in connection with various cases. A total of nine cases have been filed against him, and he has now secured bail in all of them.
Of the nine, he was granted bail in the Banani police station case by the High Court on August 10. The state appealed that bail order to the Appellate Division. Hearing that appeal on August 17, the Appellate Division’s chamber court issued a “no order,” meaning his bail in that case also stood. That cleared the way for his release.
Lawyer Motahar Hossain Saju said Justice A B M Khairul Hoque would go from the jail directly to his residence in Dhanmondi.
According to information from Khairul Hoque’s lawyers, after he secured bail in six separate cases, a fresh process to show him arrested in yet another case prompted a writ petition to the High Court on May 13. After a preliminary hearing, the High Court issued a rule on May 17, ordering that Khairul Hoque not be shown as arrested or harassed in cases beyond those specifically identified. The state sought a stay on that order and filed for leave to appeal. The Appellate Division disposed of the leave-to-appeal petition with an order on August 9.
The Appellate Division’s order directed the High Court to hear and dispose of the related rule quickly. It also stated that Khairul Hoque may not leave the country without the relevant court’s permission. With the leave-to-appeal petition disposed of, lawyers involved in the matter said, the High Court’s earlier order — barring his arrest or harassment in cases beyond those specifically identified — remains in effect for him.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report