The Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police has arrested BNP leader and former Shahbagh councillor Khaja Habibullah Habib in connection with the murder of Swechchhasebak Dal leader Billal Hossain Talukder in the capital’s Mouchak area.
Khaja Habib was arrested from Lalbagh in Dhaka on Thursday night.
DMP Additional Commissioner (DB) Shafiqul Islam confirmed the arrest to journalists on Friday afternoon.
He said Khaja Habib was not named in the First Information Report (FIR), but investigators found information indicating his alleged involvement in the killing.
“He has been arrested based on the investigation findings,” Shafiqul Islam said.
The DB official said investigators expect to obtain important information about the incident through questioning him.
Billal Hossain Talukder, former convener of Ramna thana unit of Jatiyatabadi Swechchhasebak Dal, was stabbed on the night of 8 June during a local arbitration meeting in front of Anarkali Market in Mouchak.
He was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital in critical condition, where doctors declared him dead.
The following day, Billal’s wife Ambia Khatun filed a murder case with Ramna Police Station, naming 21 Jubo Dal leaders and activists as accused.
Police said nine accused named in the case have so far been arrested. However, the alleged main accused, expelled Ramna thana Jubo Dal convener Didarul Islam Babu, remains out of custody. He is currently on anticipatory bail.
Initially, police suspected that the killing could have been linked to a dispute over alleged extortion involving roadside shops in front of Anarkali Market.
Investigators said the probe is ongoing to determine the exact motive behind the murder.
