‘Non-Fugitive AL’ president released from police custody

Lawyer M Kamal Uddin, who claims to be the president of the “Bangladesh Non-Fugitive Awami League”, was released from police custody on Saturday following a court order.
He was taken into police custody from a rented house in the CDA Tek area under Karnaphuli police station in Chattogram around 1:30am after a group of people reportedly laid siege to his residence. Sources said Kamal, a resident of Satkania upazila, had been living in the CDA Tek area for the past one and a half months.
Several people surrounded his rented house on Friday night. Police later took him into custody to prevent any untoward incident, they said. Confirming the matter, Karnaphuli police station Officer-in-Charge Noor Ahmed told the Daily Sun that Kamal had neither been detained nor arrested.
“He was taken into police custody mainly for his own safety,” he said.
“Under the rules, he was supposed to be handed over to his family. But as no family member came by noon, he was sent to court under Section 88 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. He was released from there,” the OC added. Kamal is a Supreme Court lawyer and previously served as a panel lawyer for the International Islamic University Chittagong (IIUC). He recently came into the spotlight after announcing the formation of a committee named “Bangladesh Non-Fleeing Awami League”.
Claiming to be the committee’s president, he criticised Awami League leaders who went into hiding after 5 August 2024. Videos of his remarks have since circulated on social media platforms, including Facebook and TikTok.  
Kamal was previously a leader of the district Jubo League. He sought the party’s nomination for the chairman’s post in the local Union Parishad elections but did not receive it.
He had earlier claimed that he had given Tk30 lakh in cash and cheques to party leaders, including then South district Awami League president and late lawmaker Moslem Uddin Ahmed, in an attempt to secure the nomination.
He first came into the public spotlight by filing a case seeking the return of the money. Following the case, he was expelled from the organisation four years ago.