Supreme Court Stays Bail for Former Lawmaker Momtaz Begum in Two Murder Cases

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The Appellate Division’s chamber court has stayed the bail granted to former member of parliament and folk singer Momtaz Begum in two separate murder cases. Justice Md. Rezaul Haque issued the order on Monday following petitions filed by the state seeking to overturn a previous High Court decision that had granted the artist interim bail.

The legal proceedings stem from a series of criminal cases filed against Begum in Ashulia and Mirpur Model police stations, which include allegations of murder and attempted murder. While the High Court had initially granted her interim bail in three of these cases on June 15, the state challenged these rulings in the Appellate Division. Notably, the chamber court upheld her bail in one specific attempted murder case in Ashulia just yesterday, but the latest order suspends her release regarding the two remaining murder accusations.

During the hearing, Deputy Attorney General Nahid Hossain represented the state, while senior lawyers Sara Hossain and Motahar Hossain Saju appeared on behalf of the former legislator. Following the order, the Deputy Attorney General confirmed that the court has stayed the bail in the two murder cases and directed that the pending rules regarding her bail petitions be addressed by the High Court.

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Begum, a celebrated folk singer who served multiple terms as the Awami League lawmaker for Manikganj-2, currently faces six separate legal cases. Her legal counsel, Khairun Nessa, noted that while one bail remains intact, the broader status of her legal defense across all six cases remains under judicial review.

The former politician has been in custody since May 12 of last year, when she was apprehended by the Detective Branch of police from a residence near Star Kabab in Dhanmondi. Following the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, 2024, amid a mass uprising, scrutiny into various allegations against her has intensified, leading to her ongoing detention in connection with multiple charges across Dhaka.