Pabna, Aug. 14 (V7N) — Golam Hasnain Russell, son of former Pabna-3 lawmaker Mokbul Hossain, has been granted four-hour parole to attend his mother’s funeral prayers on Friday.
Russell, general secretary of the Bhangaura upazila unit of the Awami League and a former upazila chairman and mayor, is currently in custody in connection with criminal cases.
Pabna District Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner Aminul Islam confirmed that Russell’s parole application had been approved on humanitarian grounds to allow him to attend his mother’s funeral. He will be released under police escort from 8am to noon on Friday and will return to custody after the funeral and burial.
Russell’s lawyer, Advocate Rezaul Karim Palash, said his client had secured bail in one case but was subsequently shown arrested in another case. Following his mother’s death, an application was submitted to the district administration seeking temporary release so that Russell could attend the funeral.
Russell’s mother, Nurjahan Rekha, died at a hospital in Dhaka at around 9:55am on Thursday while undergoing treatment. She had reportedly been suffering from kidney disease and other health complications for a prolonged period. Her condition deteriorated about one and a half months ago, when she was admitted to a hospital in Dhaka and later placed on life support.
Police arrested Russell and his associate Bashir from the Mirpur area of Dhaka on the night of July 20. They were subsequently shown arrested in an explosives case filed with Bhangaura Police Station and sent to jail.
More recently, Russell’s lawyer sought bail citing his mother’s critical condition. After a lengthy hearing, Judge Aftabuzzaman of the Pabna District and Sessions Judge’s Court-2 granted him bail on Wednesday, Aug. 12.
Although the court’s release order reached Pabna District Jail in due course, Russell was not released. On Thursday, police produced him before a court and showed him arrested in another case recently filed with Chatmohar Police Station.
As a result, his release under the earlier bail order could not take effect because of the new case.
The development raised concerns that Russell might be unable to attend his mother’s funeral. While appearing before the court, he reportedly broke down in tears after learning of his mother’s death.
Following approval of the parole application by the district administration, Russell will now have the opportunity to attend his mother’s funeral prayers and burial before returning to custody under police escort.
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