Cellphone Jammers for Bangladesh Jails to stop widespread use by high profile inmates.
Following detection of quite widespread use of mobile phones by prisoners in violation of the jail code, the Bangladesh government decided to install cellphone jammers at all 67 prisons across the country. Recently Jail authority seized a few mobile phones from prisoners, which they had been using while in jail.
One low range cellphone jammer has already been installed at Dhaka Central Jail experimentally about 15 days ago. In the first phase, the jammers will be installed at all 12 central jails, and the rest of the jails will get them gradually.
Recently, newspapers published reports with corroborations from jail authorities that many high profile prisoners, detained in the ongoing anti-graft drive, have been using mobile phones coordinating their political, professional, and other activities outside from jails.The jail authorities already took punitive actions against at least 10 high profile prisoners for using cellphones in prisons violating the jail code.
Imprisoned former ministers Air Vice-marshal (retd) Altaf Hossain Chowdhury and Barrister Nazmul Huda, and former state minister Aman Ullah Aman were shifted to Narayanganj Jail punitively for using mobile phones in Dhaka Central Jail.
Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury, political adviser to former prime minister Khaleda Zia, was sent to Sylhet Jail punitively from Kashimpur Jail, and former housing minister Mirza Abbas was sent back to Dhaka Central Jail from Apollo Hospital for same reasons.
The jail authorities also seized mobile phones from possessions of imprisoned former state minister Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir, Sigma Huda, wife of Nazmul Huda, Sabera Aman, wife of Aman Ullah Aman, and Khusnud Lobi, wife of former lawmaker Ali Asgar Lobi.
The cellphone jammers will be purchased from abroad through tenders.