Court Reporter:

A private agreement has been drawn up to settle a case over the death of construction worker Mehedi Hasan Mim in a car crash in Dhaka’s Baridhara for Tk 900,000.

A state prosecutor, however, says the criminal case cannot be resolved through such a compromise.

The agreement calls for Mehedi’s family to take steps to withdraw the case and support bail for a 17-year-old boy and driver Akash Mark.

But the investigating officer says the deal will not affect the police investigation, while state prosecutor Harun Or Rashid says a case filed under the Road Transport Act cannot be settled through a private agreement.

Mehedi, 24, died after a car mounted a footpath on Road No. 1 in the Baridhara Diplomatic Zone and struck him as he sat there around 5pm on Tuesday.

He was taken to Kurmitola General Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

People at the scene detained a teenager who was found in the driver’s seat and handed him over to police. He was released into his uncle’s custody after questioning that night.

Mehedi’s brother Moktadir Islam filed a case with Gulshan Police Station on Wednesday, naming Akash as the driver. The teenager was not named in the case.

Amid criticism over the handling of the incident, police arrested the 17-year-old on Wednesday. A Dhaka juvenile court sent him to the Juvenile Development Centre in Gazipur’s Tongi the following day.

What The Tk 900,000 Agreement Says

After Thursday’s hearing, the teenager’s lawyer Alamgir Hossain said that a Tk 900,000 settlement had been reached with Mehedi’s family.

“Tk 100,000 has been given for the victim’s burial and funeral expenses, while another Tk 800,000 has been provided considering the future of Mehedi’s elderly parents,” he said.

The written agreement describes the car owner as the “first party” and Mehedi’s brother, the plaintiff in the case, as the “second party”.

It says the car lost control, mounted the footpath and struck Mehedi, describing what happened as an “unintentional accident”.

According to the document, Akash was driving the car at the time, while the car owner’s younger brother was also inside.

The agreement says there had been no previous enmity or acquaintance between the two sides. It also says the driver and the car owner’s younger brother were injured and the vehicle was extensively damaged.

It says the two sides reached a settlement through the mediation of relatives and other individuals.

Family To Seek Withdrawal Of Case

The agreement says that the full Tk 900,000 was handed over to Mehedi’s family in the presence of relatives and witnesses.

In return, Mehedi’s family agreed to take steps to withdraw the case and appear in court to express no objection to bail for the teenager and Akash.

The car owner will bear the costs of seeking the withdrawal, while Mehedi’s family would provide any assistance required, according to the agreement.

The document also says the family would raise no further complaint against Akash over the incident.

For his part, the car owner agreed not to seek compensation for damage to the vehicle or the treatment of the driver and his younger brother.

The agreement says neither side would have any further financial claims against the other and that a breach of its terms would be treated as criminal breach of trust and fraud.

Police Investigation To Continue

Moktadir confirmed that a settlement had been reached, although he said he did not know how much money was involved.

“A settlement has been reached over the case. I don’t know how much money was involved. My uncle knows,” he said.

Investigating officer Arefin Islam said he was unaware of the agreement.

Asked whether it would affect the investigation, he said: “No, we will continue our investigation as usual.”

Prosecutor Harun said the case could not simply be ended through an agreement between the two sides.

“A case filed under the Road Transport Act cannot be settled through compromise,” he said.

“If the plaintiff and accused reach a settlement, the court is not bound to accept it. When a person has died, such a settlement in the case is not acceptable.”

He further said that CCTV footage showed the teenager was in the car and that information had emerged suggesting he had been driving.

“An underage teenager went out with a car and a life was lost. The case will be investigated. Those involved will be brought under the law.”