A Jhalakathi court yesterday sentenced nine members of the banned Islamist outfit Harkatul Jihad al Islami (Huji) to four years' imprisonment for their involvement in criminal and militant activities.

It also fined each of them Tk 10,000. In case of failure to comply with the court order, they will have to serve three months more in jail.

The convicts are Moshiur Rahman, Nurul Islam, Baki Billah and Sohag, of Jhalakathi's Nalchhity upazila, Mohammad Jubayer, of Jhalakathi's Kathalia upazila, Abul Bashar, Minhajul Abedin, and Abdul Aziz, of Rajoir upazila in Madaripur, and Serajul Islam, of Muksudpur upazila in Gopalganj. They are aged between 18 and 45, said Abdul Mannan Rasul, public prosecutor of Jhalakathi.

District and Sessions Judge of Jhalakathi Shafiqul Karim convicted the nine in a case filed under the Anti-terrorism Act, 2009. He also acquitted them of two other cases lodged under the arms and explosive substances act, added the PP.   

According to the case statement, on August 14, 2013, police arrested the nine Huji men from a mosque near Khademul Islamic Qawmi Madrasa of Paschim Kamdepur village in Nalchhity upazila while they were holding a secret meeting there. The drive was led by Majid Ali, the then superintendent of police in Jhalakathi.

Police also recovered a hand grenade, four sharp weapons and jihadi books from the mosque.

Abul Kalam Azad, sub-inspector of Nalchhity Police Station, later filed three cases against the nine under the anti-terrorism act and the arms and explosive substances act.

AZM Masudur Zaman, the then officer-in-charge of the police station, and Abul Kalam Azad, the investigation officer of the case, pressed charges against the nine accused on September 24, 2013. 

In November 2014, SM Sulaiman, the then district and sessions judge of Jhalakathi, formed the charge against the accused.