A Chattogram court on Monday granted bail to 65 lawyers, including聽 former International Society for Krishna Consciousness leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari鈥檚 lawyer, accused in two separate cases involving attacks on聽 lawyers, police, and litigants, as well as vandalism and explosions.
The lawyers surrendered to the additional chief metropolitan magistrate of Chattogram Sarker Hasan Shahriar and applied for bail.
After a hearing, the court granted them bail, said state counsel Riad Uddin.聽
Riad Uddin said, 鈥楾he 65 accused lawyers, including Chinmoy鈥檚 lawyer Shuvasish Sharma, have surrendered to the court and the court has granted them bail on a bond of Tk 1,000 until the charge sheet in the case is submitted.鈥櫬�
Defence lawyer Subhrajit Chowdhury said, 鈥楽ixty-five lawyers have been implicated despite having no involvement in the incident. The complainant was not present at the scene.鈥�
According to court sources, the accused lawyers entered the courtroom at around 11:30am. The hearing lasted for about an hour.聽
Security arrangements on the court premises, meanwhile, were strengthened further. Police set up checkpoints at two entry points, restricting vehicle movement except for private vehicles. Shakila Sultana, deputy commissioner of Chattogram Metropolitan Police, said, 鈥榃e have taken adequate security measures to prevent any untoward incidents.鈥�
After the court鈥檚 order, a group of lawyers staged demonstrations on the court premises expressing anger over the bail decision.聽
Lawyer Muhammad Shamsul Alam, member secretary of the Lawyers鈥� Unity Council and counsel for the complainant, said, 鈥楾hose who have surrendered today are instigators of the November 26 incident and it is highly unusual for a magistrate鈥檚 court to grant bail in such cases involving explosives.鈥櫬�
On November 26, 2024, a Chattogram court rejected the bail petition of expelled ISKCON leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari in a sedition case, sending him to jail. His followers staged protests at the court premises, leading to clashes with the police. During the chaos, lawyer Saiful Islam Alif was killed near the court premises.
Six cases were filed so far over the incidents centring the lawyer murder.
