A Dhaka court has issued a show-cause notice and summoned the investigation officer of an arson case over inconsistencies in an application to show an imprisoned former army officer arrested as a suspect.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Ehsanul Islam passed the order on Monday following a hearing on the investigation officer’s application, demanding a written explanation from him. The court has scheduled the next hearing on the matter for 16 August.
The court directed the officer-in-charge (OC) of Bhatara Police Station and the case’s investigation officer, Sub-Inspector Md Chand Ali, to explain on 16 August how the suspect could be involved in the crime while already behind bars.
Confirming the development, Prosecution Division Sub-Inspector Kamal Uddin said the alleged arson took place on 11 November 2025. The defence lawyer informed the court that the accused, former army officer Major Md Sadekul Haque, 30, was already in prison when the incident occurred.
According to the police application, a private car was set on fire in Basundhara area under Bhatara Police Station as part of a “complete shutdown” programme declared by the then-banned organisations Chhatra League, Jubo League, and Awami League.
The application said the act was intended to destabilise the country and that investigations revealed Sadekul’s direct and indirect involvement. Sadekul is currently detained in jail in connection with a separate anti-terrorism case filed at Bhatara Police Station.
The case details reveal that at around 12am on 11 November 2025, a driver named Md Monir, who is known to the plaintiff, parked the car in front of Basundhara Bitumen Gate under Bhatara Police Station and went home.
At around 2:20am on 12 November, national emergency service 999 alerted the police and fire service, who subsequently brought the fire under control. The fire caused damages estimated at Tk2 lakh.
On 13 July last year, Bhatara Police Station Sub-Inspector Jyotirmoy Mondal filed a case as the plaintiff against several named individuals and 300 to 400 unidentified suspects. Sub-Inspector Chand Ali later filed the application to show Sadekul arrested as a suspect in this case.
On 29 October 2024, a military court dismissed Sadekul from Bangladesh Army and sentenced him to three months’ imprisonment. He was subsequently sent to Dhaka Central Jail, Keraniganj, where he has remained detained ever since.
