DHAKA: Dhaka Metropolitan Police took Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna to its Detective Branch (DB) office at the city’s Minto Road early Wednesday.
Manna’s whereabouts was known more 20 hours after he had been picked up by “plainclothes lawpersons” in the city early Tuesday.
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) media wing assistant director Maksudul Alma told banglanews that that RAB detained Manna and later handed over him to Gushan Thana police.
Manna was sent to the DB office following the handing over him to the Thana, said DMP assistant commissioner (Gulshan Zone) Nurul Alam.
He was handed over to the police around 12:20am, and subsequently sent to the DB office.
The Nagorik Oikya chief was shown arrested in a case filed with Gulshan Thana on charge of instigating military revolt. Sub-Inspector (SI) Sohel Rana of the thana filed the case on Tuesday afternoon.
After meeting Gulshan Thana Officer-In-Charge (OC) Rafiqul Islam, Manna’s wife Meher Negir told banglanews that her husband is in police custody at DB office now.
A case was filed against him and he would be produced before the court on Wednesday morning, she added.
According to Manna’s family, a plainclothes team of DB picked up him from his niece’s house on Road No. 17-A of Block E in Bannai around 3:30am on Tuesday, which DMP stockperson denied earlier.
The detention had came two days after audio clips of a long telephone conversation between Manna and BNP leader Sadeque Hossain Khoka, who is currently residing in the USA, was leaked on Sunday.
During the conversation, Manna has been heard paying heed to pave the way for military intervention in Bangladesh and asking for ‘a few deaths’ at Dhaka University to shake the government.
Demand of arresting Manna for hatching anti-government conspiracy rose from the ruling party men including that of several cabinet members following the phone conversation leakage.
During the conversation, Nagarik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna advised BNP leader Sadique Hossain to tell his party men to go in for a massive showdown at Dhaka University.
'Tell your people' to join Nagarik Oikya programmes. It will strengthen the democratic movement at the end of the day," Manna was heard telling Khoka.
Manna said, “If possible take over a few halls in a huge head-on confrontation. Maybe a few will die on both sides but if a few halls can be taken over, it will shake up the government.”
In another audio conversation with an untraced person Manna was expressing his desire to sit with military officers.
The person at the other end of the phone was saying, that he was associated with the Jan 11, 2007 military takeover.
They were discussing plans to meet two top army officers.
In the talk with Khoka Manna also heard to say, “We are dominating the talk shows. We have put the government on the defensive.”
”We have successfully established that the root of the current crisis is Jan 5 polls.”
Manna also sounds optimistic about the initiatives by US, EU and UN, “only if the Indians can be made to change their line,” he was saying.
Manna also mentioned about Prime Minister Sk Hasina’s upset in the conversation. He was heard to say, “I am under huge surveillance. The prime minister is upset with me, so I have been asked by people to be really careful.”
BDST: 0656 HRS, FEB 25, 2015
