Twenty-eight Bangladesh Rifles members yesterday appealed to a Dhaka court to let them retract their confessional statements given earlier on the February 2009 at the BDR headquarters in Pilkhana.

After the hearing, Metropolitan Magistrate Dr Abdul Majid directed the authorities concerned to keep the petitions into the case file.

The petitioners alleged that they were tortured in custody during interrogation to give confessional statements.

During the hearing, the petitioners were produced before the court and they described what they went through during their remand period.

Earlier, 177 BDR men submitted similar petitions on different days.

Criminal Investigation Department had so far arrested a total of 2,190 BDR members including 30 civilians for their alleged involvement in the carnage.

BNP leader Nasiruddin Ahmed Pintu and Awami League leader Torab Ali were arrested in the case.

Of them, a total of 2,151 members were remanded while 521 gave confessional statements.

At least 74 people, including 57 army officers deputed to the paramilitary force, were killed in the February 25-26 bloody mutiny at the Pilkhana in the capital.