Life-term convict in Avijit murder case gets bail

The High Court has granted bail to Shafiur Rahman Farabi, a life-term convict in writer-blogger Avijit Roy murder case.

A HC bench comprising Justice Zakir Hossain and Justice KM Rasheduzzaman Raja passed the order on Wednesday.

Senior lawyer SM Shahjahan argued the bail application in the court. He was accompanied by lawyer Muhammad Hujjatul Islam Khan.

Regarding the bail order, lawyer Muhammad Hujjatul Islam Khan told reporters: "The High Court accepted Shafiur Rahman Farabi's appeal against the trial court's verdict in 2021. Now the court has granted him interim bail. There are confessional statements of four accused in this case. None of the four accused mentioned Farabi's name in their statements. Even his name did not appear in the testimony of any witness other than the investigation officer. Farabi himself did not give any confessional statement. Besides, he has been imprisoned in this case since March 3, 2015. When bail was sought based on these arguments, the court granted him bail."

On February 26, 2015, blogger Avijit Roy was hacked to death in the Dhaka University area.

On February 16, 2021, the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal of Dhaka sentenced Farabi to life-term imprisonment in Avijit murder case. Farabi later appealed against the verdict.