International Crimes Tribunal sends former MP Fazle Karim to jail

The International Crimes Tribunal, or ICT, has sent former Chattogram MP ABM Fazle Karim Chowdhury to jail.

The order was issued on Sunday by a three-member panel, chaired by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumdar.

Tribunal counsel BM Sultan Mahmud confirmed that the order was issued after Karim was brought before the tribunal following a production warrant.

Prosecutor Abdullah Al Noman, representing the state, had requested that the former MP be sent to jail. The tribunal granted the application and promptly directed his detention.

Karim, the former MP from Chattogram’s Raozan, had been arrested in an unrelated case prior to the tribunal’s ruling.

On Feb 5, he was shown arrested in an ICT case and ordered to appear before the tribunal on Feb 16.

On Sept 12, 2024, the Border Guard Bangladesh, or BGB, detained Karim at the Akhaura border area of Brahmanbaria, after which he was taken to Chattogram.

He faces several charges, with 10 separate cases filed against him in multiple police stations in Chattogram. These include serious offences such as murder, kidnapping, extortion, attempted murder, and illegal land acquisition through force, among others.