Ansar Battalion Bill, 2023 passed in parliament

City Desk :
The Ansar Battalion Bill, 2023 was passed in Parliament on Thursday rejecting the proposal to empower Ansar battalions to detain criminals, search bodies and seize goods.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal moved the Bill and it was passed by voice vote, reports UNB.

The Ansar Battalion Bill, 2023, was placed in Parliament on October 23 where it proposed to empower the Ansar Battalion to detain criminals, search bodies and seize goods.

As per the initially proposed 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.

But the proposal witnessed serious opposition from the police department.

There, some amendments were recommended in some cases including clauses 7 and 8 of the Bill.

Section 8 of the Bill proposed to give the Ansar battalions powers of detention and search.

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

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.”