Standing committee says no to arming Ansar battalion with power of arrest, search

UNB :
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Home Affairs on Thursday recommended not to empower Ansar battalion to detain criminals, search bodies and seize goods.

The Standing Committee made the recommendation in their meeting held at the Sangsad Bhaban.

The Ansar Battalion Bill, 2023, was placed in Parliament on Monday by Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan.

As per the Bill, a battalion member shall, in the case of an offence committed against him, with the approval of the superior officer concerned, detain the offender and immediately hand him over to the police and, as the case may be, on the direction of the Judicial Magistrate or the Executive Magistrate or the officer responsible for the purpose, to search the person, enter and can search any place and seize the goods.

The Bill was sent to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Ministry for examination.

Some amendments have been recommended in some cases including clauses 7 and 8 of the Bill.

In the Section 8 of the Bill introduced in Parliament proposed to give the Ansar battalions powers of detention and search.

The parliamentary committee has recommended amendments in this section of the Bill too.

This section states, “Any battalion shall take necessary action under the Criminal Procedure Code in respect of an offence committed in front of a member.”

According to committee sources, this proposal came from the police.

As per the Section 7 of the Bill, regarding the responsibility of the Ansar Battalion, it was said that the government or any government authority with the approval of the government will carry out the responsibility in any public security work.

Amendment was proposed here. It has been said that ‘will assist in the fulfillment of responsibilities’.

The Bill tabled in Parliament specified the maximum penalty for insurgency in Ansar forces to be death penalty or life imprisonment.