Erfan Salim cleared from arms case

A Dhaka tribunal today cleared Mohammad Erfan Salim, son of Awami League leader and lawmaker Haji Mohammad Salim, from an arms case as prosecution did not file any petition seeking further investigation.

Earlier in the day, the tribunal accepted the probe report clearing Erfan as police did not find any evidence to prove the charges against him in this regard.

Judge KM Emrul Kayesh of Dhaka Special Tribunal-1 passed the order after a short hearing on the probe report.

But Erfan cannot walk out of jail as he was yet to get bail in two other cases filed with two separate police stations in October last year, his lawyer Pran Nath told The Daily Star.

Chawkbazar police submitted the probe reports on arms and drug cases to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court of Dhaka on January 5.

In their final report, Chawkbazar police said they did not find evidence to prove the charges against Erfan in two cases filed under the narcotics control and arms acts. The IO also appealed to the court to discharge Erfan from the cases.

Erfan's bodyguard Md Zahidul Mollah, however, was charged with possession of an illegal firearm and narcotics.

Erfan was arrested after a case was filed against him on charge of "attacking" Lt Wasif Ahmed Khan of Bangladesh Navy in the Dhaka's Dhanmondi area on October 25 last year.

Rab conducted a drive at Haji Salim's house on Debidas Lane in Old Dhaka the next day.

A mobile court of Rab on the same day handed six months' imprisonment to Erfan for keeping walkie-talkies illegally and six months for possessing illegal alcohol.