Ijtema clash: Saad faction leader Shafiullah placed on 2-day remand
He is the 9th accused in the murder case
A Gazipur court granted a two-day remand for Shafiullah, a leader of Maulana Saad's faction of the Tablighi Jamaat, in connection with the deaths of three people during a clash over control of the Ijtema ground in Tongi on 18 December.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Gazipur granted the remand after Shafiullah was produced before the court, confirmed Iskandar Habibur Rahman, officer-in-charge (OC) of Tongi West Police Station.
According to police sources, Shafiullah is the 9th accused in the murder case filed by the Zubayer faction of Tablighi Jamaat with the police station on 19 December. He was arrested from the Stadium Road area in Palong, Shariatpur yesterday around 9:15pm.
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Later that night, Shafiullah was brought to Tongi West Police Station.
According to the case statement, going against the government order Mawlana Wasiful tried to hold an Ijtema with the followers of Mawlana Saad at the Ijtema ground between 20-24 December.
They even threatened to foil the first phase of Bishwa Ijtema if Mawlana Saad was not given permission to attend it. At one point, they attacked the followers of Mawlana Jubayer who were guarding the Ijtema ground, beat up and hacked three of his followers to death.
Earlier, leaders of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement Sarjis Alam and Hasnat Abdullah talked to the followers of Mawlana Saad and went to Kakrail Mosque to hold a discussion with the followers of Mawlana Jubayer on 17 December. Although they asked the Saad followers to remain calm, they carried out attacks on Jubayer followers at the Ijtema ground, the case statement added.
At least 30 people, including Mawlana Wasiful Islam of Saad faction, have been named and hundreds of others have been kept unnamed in the case.
Police earlier arrested Muaz Bin Noor, spokesperson for the followers of Maulana Saad, as accused number 5, and Zia Bin Kashem, Maulana Saad Kandhalvi faction's leader, as accused number 6, in this case. They are currently in jail.
As per the government decision, the first phase of the Bishwa Ijtema, organised by Zubayer's followers, will be held from 31 January to 2 February next year and the second phase, organised by Saad followers, will be held from 7 to 9 February.
According to media coordinators of the two groups, there is an ongoing dispute over whether Saad's followers will be able to hold a 'Jor Ijtema' at the Ijtema ground from 20 to 24 December and cases have also been filed.
