A Dhaka court has placed BNP's Dhaka city (South) joint convener Mohammad Nabi Ullah Nabi on a three-day remand in a case filed for arson attacks on the intercity Benapole Express train at Gopibagh in the capital.

On Sunday, police produced him before the court. After that, DB Police SI Ashraful Alam filed a petition with the court seeking a seven-day remand for proper investigation of the case filed with Jatrabari Police Station. On the other hand, Nabi's lawyer submitted a petition seeking bail and the cancellation of the remand order for him.

After hearing from both parties, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Farzana Shakila Sumu rejected the bail plea and placed Nabi on three-day remand.

According to the remand petition, equipped with locally-made weapons, bricks, bamboo sticks, and cocktails, Nabi Ullah Nabi took a position illegally on the paved road in front of the BGB market under Jatrabari Police Station on 5 November. They kept shouting provocative and insulting slogans against the government. They created severe public suffering, obstructing the movement of traffic on the road.

Nabi along with other accused, pelted the police with the aim of tarnishing country's image by deteriorating the law and order situation and embarrassing the government. Two buses of the Great Turagh Transport Company parked on the side of the road were detonated with incendiary cocktails on the spot, leading to chaos on the road. Two buses were damaged to the tune of Tk 5,80,000 in the fire, the petition added. 

The remand prayer also stated that on the instructions and orders of the accused, Nabi Ullah Nabi, the unidentified BNP miscreants, including the fugitive leaders and activists, with the instigation, guidance, connivance, and cooperation of many unknown persons, organised illegally, stopped the traffic, obstructed, and attacked the police, and detonated cocktail bombs.

In this context, they were arrested from the Uttara West Police Station area on the basis of secret information obtained during the operation and using information technology.

Preliminary interrogation of the arrested revealed that the accused Nabi Ullah Nabi was the mastermind of the arson attack on the Benapole Express train in the Gopibagh area.

On the night before the start of the 48-hour strike called by BNP and like-minded people, the Dhaka-bound Benapole Express train that left Benapole in Jashore was set on fire at around 9:00pm on Friday in the capital's Gopibagh. At least four people, including two women and a child, died in the fire. Many are receving treatment in the hospital with burn injuries. According to doctors, the condition of some of them is critical.

Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested five people, including Nabi Ullah Nabi, after raiding various areas of the capital on Friday night immediately after the fire incident.