HC grants bail to GK Shamim in arms case

The High Court (HC) on Wednesday granted bail to GK Shamim, a government contractor who gained infamy during the ‍‍`casino raids‍‍` of late 2019, in a case filed under the Arms Act.

An HC bench of Justice SM Abdul Momin and Justice Mahmud Hossain Talukder passed the order after hearing a bail petition, said defence counsel and former attorney general Fida A Kamal.

He said his client was prosecuted for violating section 25 of the ‘Firearms Licence Issuance, Renewal and Use Policy-2016’ despite having a licence of arms which was mentioned in a trial court verdict.

Calling the judgment illegal, the lawyer said the crime was not committed due to the violation of the policy as per the ‘Arms Act-1978’. 

Though the prosecution opposed the bail, the HC granted it after hearing in this connection.

Deputy attorney general Samira Tarannum Miti said a note was sought from the attorney general, the highest legal officer of the country, to appeal in the Appellate Division against the HC order.

GK Shamim, who was known as an influential contractor of Sabujbagh, Basabo and Motijheel areas of the capital, was arrested on September 20, 2019.

Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) members seized illegal firearms and Fixed Deposit Receipts worth Tk 165 crore, Tk 1.8 crore in cash and foreign currencies from his house and office at Niketan.

The elite force lodged three cases – one under narcotics control, one under money-laundering prevention and other under arms acts – against Shamim with Gulshan Police Station on September 21.

In October 2019, Rab filed a chargesheet against the accused in the arms case.

The official trial proceeding in the case began on February 28 this year after the court framed charges against the eight accused including Shamim rejecting an appeal for acquittal.

On September 25 last year, a Dhaka court sentenced eight people, including Shamim to life term imprisonment in the arms case.

On July 17 this year, another Dhaka court sentenced GK Shamim to 10 years of imprisonment in a money laundering case. He has been in jail since his arrest.