Jamaat leaders freed; police say they weren't detained, but questioned

Jamaat leaders have been freed from Dhaka Metropolitan Police Headquarters hours after their "detention". 

"You cannot say it is a detention as we're just verifying their identity, checking whether they are accused in previous cases or not," Muhammad Salman Farsi, assistant commissioner of Ramna zone told The Business Standard on Monday.

He further said, "The Jamaat leaders were taken to the DMP headquarters in the afternoon after verifying their identity. Hours later, they left the DMP office and met the DMP high-up's regarding the Monday's rally permission." 

However, the police official refused to make any comment on whether they got the permission or not.

Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami issued a statement saying four of their leaders were detained outside the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Headquarters when they went to submit an application seeking permission to hold their programme scheduled for 5 May. 

The leaders are Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association's former assistant secretary Advocate Saifur Rahman, former senior vice president advocate Jalal Uddin Bhuian, and Supreme Court lawyers advocate Mostafizur Rahman and advocate Abdul Karim.

The statement mentioned that the Dhaka Metropolitan South unit of Jamaat initiated a peaceful rally on 5 June, to demand the reinstatement of a caretaker government system, control over increasing commodity prices, and the release of all detained leaders and activists, including the Jamaat ameer.

On 28 May, an online application was submitted to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner, requesting permission and cooperation for a peaceful gathering, said Jamaat.

Today, a delegation of four members, led by Supreme Court lawyer Advocate Saifur Rahman, went to the DMP office. Unfortunately, they were denied entry by the police who detained them under the supervision of Additional Deputy Commissioner Harun-or-Rashid and Joint Commissioner Biplab Kumar.

The statement emphasised that the authorities have no jurisdiction to prohibit individuals from entering police offices to seek permission.

It stated that it is an office of the law enforcement agency and every citizen has the right to access it. 

In the statement, Jamaat lamented over the arrest deeming it a violation of human rights.

Referring to the constitution, the Jamaat statement mentioned that any political party holds the right to hold peaceful gatherings. 

The statement further said Jamaat-e-Islami had diligently sent lawyers as representatives and followed proper procedures to obtain permission. However, instead of granting it, the police infringed upon their constitutional rights by arresting them.

The Acting Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Maulana ATM Masum, strongly condemned and protested against the actions of the police. He reaffirmed that Jamaat is a lawful political party and denounced the police's conduct in this incident.

On 28 May, Jamaat-e-Islami announced a protest rally in the capital on Monday (5 June) to demand the release of the party chief and other detained leaders.