Was the UNO blind while sentencing?

The High Court yesterday expressed strong resentment at sentencing a person by a mobile court when he was in police custody.

The HC while hearing on a rule issued earlier about the incident also questioned how a mobile court could do that.

"Was the executive magistrate [UNO of Lohagara, Chittagong] blind while sentencing Belal Uddin?" Justice Syed Muhammad Dastagir Husain threw this question at UNO Mahbub Alam, Officer-in-Charge of Lohagara police Md Shahjahan and sub-inspectors Helal Khan and Wasim Mia who were present at the court.

The other member of the bench, Justice Md Ataur Rahman Khan, put forward the same question.

Advocate Farjana Sharmin, who appeared for the UNO and the police officers, could not give any satisfactory explanation.

The HC bench is set to pass an order on this issue today and has asked the UNO and the policemen to appear before it.

On October 14 last year, a mobile court led by UNO Mahbub Alam sentenced Md Belal Uddin of Adhunanagar Sardarnipra of Lohagara upazila to eight months' imprisonment on charge of possessing two packs of cannabis.

Following a writ petition filed by Belal Uddin, the HC on January 14 summoned UNO Mahbub, OC Shahjahan and sub-inspectors Helal and Wasim to explain yesterday their conducts over the incident sentencing Belal.

The HC also issued a rule asking the respondents to explain why the jail sentence handed down on Belal through a "concocted mobile court" should not be scrapped and why legal action should not be taken against the officials responsible for sentencing him.

In the rule the court also asked the UNO and the three police officers to explain why they should not be directed to give Tk 20 lakh in compensation to Belal.

Citing from the writ petition, Belal's lawyer advocate Manzill Murshid told this correspondent the police arrested his client on October 13 last year in a criminal case under a Chittagong court order and produced him before the court on October 14.

However, a mobile court led by the Lohagara UNO jailed Belal for eight months on October 14 on charge of possessing two packs of cannabis, according to the statement of the mobile court order.

Advocate Manzill further said a mobile court must sentence a person after finding him guilty on the spot, but Belal was sentenced through a concocted mobile court while he was in custody which is contrary to the constitution and law.

Manzill yesterday told the HC that the mobile court has lost its popularity due to abuse of power.

He prayed to the court to seize the mobile court power of UNO Mahbub and order withdrawal of OC Shahjahan.