A Dhaka metropolitan magistrate court on Thursday remanded Janata Party Bangladesh secretary general and former National Press Club president Shaukat Mahmood in police custody for five days for interrogation in a case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Dhaka metropolitan magistrate Fahmida Khandaker Anna passed the order rejecting Shaukat’s bail petition.

On December 8, metropolitan magistrate Jewel Rana set Thursday for hearing on the petition as the  investigation officer of the case Detective Branch inspector for Ramna zone Akhtar Morshed produced him before the court seeking a 10-day remand.

A Detective Branch team of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police arrested Shaukat, also expelled Bangladesh Nationalist Party vice-chairman, at Malibagh in Dhaka on December 7 in the anti-terrorism case filed with the Ramna police station on September 14 against Bangladesh-origin US national Enayet Karim Chowdhury.

Shaukat was not named in the case, said the police, adding that investigators, during the probe, found his involvement with the case against Enayet.

Meanwhile, his associate SM Golam Mostafa Azad, Jatiya Party’s Rowshan faction secretary general Kazi Md Mamunur Rashid, journalist Md Azhar Ali Sarkar and Youth Solidarity’s joint secretary general Rifatul Islam Pavel were arrested for their involvement in the allegations in the case who are currently in jail.

Police on September 13 arrested Enayet at Minto Road in Dhaka for his suspicious movements and suspected conspiracy to overthrow the interim government.

On April 25, Nirapad Sarak Chai chair Ilias Kanchan and Shaukat launched a new political party, the Janata Party Bangladesh where they were made the party chair and the secretary-general, respectively.

On March 21, 2023, the BNP expelled Shaukat from all posts allegedly for violating party discipline.