A division bench of the High Court (HC) Wednesday passed a split order on bail pleas of BNP-backed mayoral candidate for Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mirza Abbas in two cases.
Presiding judge of the HC bench Justice Quamrul Islam Siddique granted three-week anticipatory bail to Mr Abbas while junior judge of the bench Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore rejected the pleas and directed him to surrender before the lower court.
Lawyers concerned said that the pleas will now be sent to the Chief Justice, who is likely to form another bench for disposal of the matter.
Mr Abbas, also standing committee member and Dhaka city unit convener of BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party), was present in the court Wednesday.
The two cases were filed by police on December 28, 2014 and January 04 this year with Paltan and Shahbag police stations respectively for arson and explosion on vehicles, sources said.
The HC bench also dropped a corruption case filed by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) against him from its cause list suggesting his lawyers to move before another HC bench dealing with the ACC cases.
Earlier on Monday, after hearing on the pleas, the HC fixed Wednesday for its order and at the same time, directed the authorities concerned not to harass or arrest Mr Abbas till disposal of the pleas on the day.
The court also ordered him not to speak with media and campaign for polls.
After the split order, his lawyer Barrister Badruddoza Badol told reporters Wednesday that until disposal of the matter by the third bench, Mr Abbas will remain as he is now. Police cannot arrest him in the two cases and he too cannot participate in the polls campaign or talk to the media.
Meanwhile, in a petition filed seeking whereabouts of 'missing' BNP joint secretary general Salahuddin Ahmed, the same HC bench deferred its verdict to Monday next (April 20).
The court deferred the date as the lawyers of Hasina Ahmed, who filed the petition, sought time to submit additional documents in support of their prayer.
Earlier on April 09, the HC set April 15 for its verdict on the petition, upon which it, on March 12, issued a rule asking the government to explain as to why an order should not be issued to find Mr Salahuddin and produce him before the court by 10:00am on March 15.
Later on April 08, her lawyers also sought the HC's order upon the government to form a judicial probe body to unearth the reasons and find the persons behind failure of the authorities to find him.
Mr Salahuddin Ahmed, a former state minister and BNP lawmaker, has been missing since March 10.
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