Army given magistracy power
Staff Correspondent
The government has empowered commissioned army officers as executive magistrates apparently to curb crimes amid police’s lower morale.
The Ministry of Public Administration issued a circular on Tuesday giving the army officers the power of executive magistrate for the next 60 days.
The circular said the power of executive magistrate has been assigned to the commissioned officers of the Bangladesh Army according to Section 12(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898.
They will try the crimes under sections 64, 65, 83, 84, 86, 95(2), 100, 105, 107, 109, 110, 126, 127, 128, 130, 133, 142 of the CrPC.
Army officers will serve as executive magistrates across the country, said the circular.
After the fall of the fascist government led by Sheikh Hasina on 5 August, many policemen left police stations. The absent cops were repeatedly instructed by the interim government to join the work, but they did not.
Later, the government fixed a deadline for the policemen to return to their posts, saying that if they did not join work by that time, they would lose their jobs.
Many policemen did not join their posts despite the warning. As a result, the law and order situation in different parts of the country deteriorated severely.
A few days before the fall of the Awami League government, a curfew was imposed in the country and the army was deployed. Even after the fall of the government, the army was not withdrawn from the field. Commissioned army personnel will be in charge of executive magistrates to maintain law and order across the country in this situation.
