Case Number: Writ Petition No. 2192 of 2004

Home 9 PIL Cases 9 Case Number: Writ Petition No. 2192 of 2004

Date of filing: 2004/04/27

Petitioners

1. Bangladesh Legal Aid and Service Trust (BLAST);

2. Ain o Salish kendra (ASK);

3. Kormojibi Nari;

4. Jatiya Ainjibi Parishad

Respondents

1. Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs

2. Secretary, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs

3. Inspector General of Police, Ramna, Dhaka

4. Dhaka Metropolitan Police

5. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Dhaka

6. Inspector General of Prisons

Facts

BLAST, Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), Kormojibi Nari and the Jatiya Ainjibi Parishad filed a writ petition challenging Section 86 of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1976 (DMPO) and the wholesale and arbitrary arrest and detention of about 7000 innocent people by law enforcement agencies under Sections 86 and 100 of the DMPO and Section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898. They cited news reports, including one published in the Daily Star on 25.04.2004, which had alleged overcrowding of prisons due to mass arrests, forcing the detainees to sleep in toilets. The news reports described inhuman living conditions, including insufficient food and medical facilities, and detailed the cruel and degrading treatment to which the detainees were subjected.

Rule/Order/Judgment

Date: 27/04/2004

Details

The High Court issued a Rule Nisi and directed the respondents to show cause as to why Section 86 of the DMPO should not be declared to be without lawful authority and without any legal effect. Pending disposal, the Court directed the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Inspector General of Prisons and the Inspector General of Police to submit a report detailing the names and particulars of the detainees and the steps taken for their release. In view of their non-compliance with the order and continued reports of mass arrest, the petitioners made an application for a direction as to why such non-compliance should not be declared to be illegal and as to why an injunction against further arrest under Section 86 of the DMPO should not be given. This was allowed on 29.09.2004. The respondents filed a provisional Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal No. 649 praying for a stay of the order of injunction till filing of regular leave petition and the Court modified the injunction on 30.09.2004.

Justices

Justice Mr Abdul Matin

Justice Mr AFM Abdur Rahman

Download as PDF

Area of law

Safeguards on Arrest,
Freedom from torture,
Prisoner’s Rights

Keywords

Mass Arrest Case

Relevant statute

Constitution, Articles 27, 31, 32, 33 and 36;

Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1976 (DMPO);

Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898;