A Dhaka court has framed charges against eight members of the banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) in a case filed for the murder of Jagriti Prokashoni publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan.
Judge Md Mujibur Rahman of the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal in Dhaka read out the charges against them on Sunday.
The court also fixed November 18 for starting the trial of the case.
Earlier on November 15, last year, Assistant Commissioner of Detective Branch (DB) Fazlur Rahman, also investigating officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka, showing 26 people as prosecution witnesses.
Six of the eight suspects have been arrested under several cases, including the one for the murder of Dipan. They have also given confessional statements before magistrates on different dates, admitting their involvement in the killing.
The six arrestees are killing squad leader Moinul Hasan Shamim alias Samir alias Imran, 24; trainer Abdus Sabur alias Samad alias Sujon alias Raju, 23; and top ABT operatives Khairul Islam alias Fahim alias Jishan, 24; Sheikh Abdullah, 27; Abu Siddiq Sohel, 34; and Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon, 25.
Apart from them, police claimed that sacked army major Syed Ziaul Haq, the military wing commander of the outfit, planned the killing. Zia and another suspect Akram Hossein alias Hasib are still on the run.
Faisal Arefin Dipan, 43, was the publisher of Jagriti Prokashani. He was hacked to death at his office in Dhaka’s Shahbagh on October 31, 2015. Later, his wife filed the case with Shahbagh Police Station accusing unknown persons.