Jamal worked as a hotel boy and doubled up by pedalling rickshaw in daytime to earn some extra money to send his mother back home at Muktagachha in Mymensingh.

Son of late Abdul Mannan, Jamal was affectionately called Biman by his mother. He landed a job at a Syedabad hotel and dreamt of growing financially able to help his family.

But police dashed his dreams, as they arrested him on April 26, 2001 in a blanket sweep against criminals in a case he was not even remotely connected with.

Jamal was taken on police remand twice for six days and a mindless legal system sent him to Dhaka Central Jail -- again to be shuttled to the juvenile correctional centre in Tongi 32 months ago, as he was a teenager.

Although Jamal proved innocent long ago, he was not freed until yesterday, as the release order did not reach the correctional centre.

"A court official asked for bribe from Jamal's lawyer to quickly send the order," alleged Advocate Zafar Hasan Sharif of Bangladesh Legal Aid Services Trust (Blast) that filed a petition with a tribunal after his release was snarled up in red tape.

The case he was arrested in was filed by one Kazi Masud with Sutrapur Police Station against some unknown criminals for terrorising the area.

Jamal was among the seven arrestees for whom police filed the final report with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, Dhaka on July 3, 2001, stating that none of them was involved in the crime.

The CMM's court sent the case docket to the Public Safety Tribunal that received the police report on November 18, 2002 and directed the authorities to release all accused.

All but Jamal were freed.

Blast filed the petition with the tribunal on September 17 this year for release of Jamal and the tribunal responded instantly.

Again, the release order did not reach Tongi for reasons best known to court officials.

The legal aid group again pleaded to the tribunal on Sunday and it once again directed the authorities to free Jamal.