DHAKA: A Dhaka court Sunday rejected bail appeal of Mahmudur Rahman, the detained acting editor of the recently closed Amar Desh, in a case filed against him for obstructing police from discharging their duties during the Bengali daily’s closure.

Acting Judge Mohammad Ismail Hossain of Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge`s Court passed the order upon the petition filed by Mahmudur Rahman’s lawyer Belal Hossain against Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court order having rejected his earlier bail prayer.

Later, Belal told banglanews24.com.bd that earlier on June 12 judge Kamrunnahar Rumi of the CMM court had rejected the bail petition of Mahmudur in the case.

On June 2, Sub-inspector of Tejgaon thana Shafiqur Rahman filed the case against Mahmud and hundred others for preventing the law enforcers from discharging duties on the day at the paper’s Karwan Bazar office.

Later at around 4 am, police arrested him from the newspaper office following a case filed by its former publisher Hasmat Ali Hasu with Tejgaon Industrial Police Station against him.

Meanwhile, Mahmud, also the ex-energy adviser of the past BNP government, was taken on a fresh remand from Dhaka Central Jail in the ‘Uttara conspiracy’ case. He was earlier sent to jail after eight days of remand in three installments.          

BDST: 1747 pm, 20 June 2010
MI/MRH/SMS/MUA