Ex-BNP leader’s son Irad sent to jail

Dhaka – A court on Tuesday sent Chowdhury Irad Ahmed Siddique, son of former BNP leader Tanvir Ahmed Siddique, to jail in a case filed for making disparaging remarks about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family members.Metropolitan Magistrate M Jakir Hossain Tipu passed the order rejecting his bail petition after police produced him before the court on completion of a four-day remand.On February 23, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested Irad in the case filed under section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act.Later, a court placed him on a four-day remand for interrogation.On September 29 last, M Tariqul Islam, joint general secretary of Jagannath University unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League, filed the case against Irad with Kotwali Police Station in the city.According to the case statement, Irad updated his Facebook status on September 25 saying “It’s not possible to assassinate Sheikh Hasina as she remains under a special security blanket of India. Indians are directly providing security to Sheikh Hasina. Because, she has been protecting Indian interest in Bangladesh.”On the same day, he uploaded a picture of a horse in his Facebook profile and gave a description, saying the father of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was the servant of the landlord of Baliadi zaminder.Besides, he posted another derogatory status against Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on September 15.Four more cases — two with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court of Dhaka and one in Gazipur and Bogra each – were also filed in this connection.UNB agency