By Sumi Khan

Dhaka, Aug 6 (IANS): The Bangladesh Police on Thursday took Teknaf Police Station officer-in-charge (OC) Pradeep Kumar Das and eight others into custody, hours after an arrest warrant was issued against him in a case filed over killing of former Army Sinha Md Rashed Khan in police fire.

"Das came to know that an arrest warrant was issued against him. He then went to the Divisional Police Hospital in Dampara area of Chittagong to receive a treatment on Thursday," said Chittagong Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mahbubur Rahman.

The OC later told the police that he wanted to surrender before the Cox's Bazar court after an arrest warrant was issued against him.

Sinha's sister Sharmin Shahria Ferdous charged Das and eight other policemen with murder in a case started on Wednesday.

Folowing that police have withdrawn Das from duty as the officer-in-charge of their Teknaf station in Cox's Bazar.

The arrest warrants were issued against Pardip Kumar Das, Baharchhara Check-post In-Charge Liyakat among the policemen chargedwith the killing of retired Army officer.

Inspector of Baharchhara Police Investigation Centre Liyakat Ali and Officer-in-charge of Teknaf Police Station Prodip Kumar Das were made first and second accused of the case respectively.

Other accused are -- policemen Nando Dulal Rakkhit, Safanur Karim, Kamal Hossain, Md Abdullah Al Mamun, Liton Miah, Tutul, and Md Mustafa.

An eyewitness said he saw the police firing in which Major (Retd) Sinha was shot dead. Claiming the incident a murder, he said everything happened within 30 minutes.

36-year-old old Sinha, who served in the Special Security Force (SSF) of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and took voluntary retirement from the Army two years ago, was killed in police firing at Teknaf checkpost on July 31 night.