On January 16 the man involved in the largest arms and ammunition haul of Bangladesh was released from jail. The High Court of Bangladesh had acquitted six individuals, including former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar, in an arms act case related to the 10-truck arms smuggling incident in Chattogram.

The court also reduced the sentences of five others, including Paresh Barua, the military commander of the Indian separatist group ULFA, in this high-profile case.

Among those acquitted is the late Matiur Rahman Nizami, former Industries Minister and Jamaat-e-Islami leader. The High Court abated the appeal in his favor due to his death. Other acquitted individuals include Mohsin Uddin Talukder, former Managing Director of state-run Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited (CUFL); KM Enamul Haque, former General Manager (Admin) of CUFL; Maj Gen (Retd) Rezzakul Haider Chowdhury, former Director of DGFI; and Nurul Amin, former Additional Secretary of the Industries Ministry.

In total, 14 individuals were initially sentenced in the arms smuggling case. With the latest High Court decision, five have been acquitted, appeals of four have been abated due to death, and sentences for five others have been reduced.The court also abated the appeals of Brig Gen (Retd) Abdur Rahim, former Director General of NSI; Deen Muhammad, a labor supplier; and Haji Sobhan, a trawler owner, due to their deaths.

Reduction of Jail Terms

Paresh Barua’s life imprisonment sentence has been reduced to 14 years. Additionally, the sentences of four other accused have been reduced to 10 years each. These individuals are Akbar Hossain Khan, a former NSI field officer; Maj (Retd) Liaquat Hossain, former Deputy Director of NSI; Wing Commander (Retd) Sahab Uddin Ahmed; and Hafizur Rahman, former Director.

The case dates back to April 1, 2004, when 10 trucks loaded with arms were seized at the CUFL jetty in Chattogram. Two cases were subsequently filed under the arms act and the special powers act at the Karnaphuli police station.

In January 2014, the Chattogram Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court and Special Tribunal-1 sentenced 14 individuals to death, including Babor, Nizami, and Barua. In a separate case under the arms act, the same accused received life imprisonment sentences. However, on December 18 of last year, the court acquitted six, including Babor, from the death sentence.

Lutfozzaman Babor was part of BNP government (Khalidia Zia’s party) when he was arrested in 2004. He was a well known ISI (Pakistan) asset. Many reports had claimed that Babar was involved in the killing of secular forces inside Bangladesh and helping open India’s eastern front for ISI. India’s keenly watching Babar’s release.