Ershad's wife arrested on theft and threat charges

DHAKA, Sunday (AFP)

Bangladeshi police arrested the second wife of former president Hussain Mohammad Ershad after he accused her of stealing money and threatening his life, police said.

Acting on charges laid by the 77-year-old former military strongman, police took 35-year-old Bidisha Ershad into custody at her residence in an upmarket district of Dhaka.

Television newscasts showed dramatic scenes of her threatening to throw herself from an upper storey of her apartment building before police managed to take her into custody.

"We've arrested Bidisha Ershad after her husband brought charges of stealing money, ornaments, damage to property and threats to his life," said Nur-e Alam, the police officer in charge of Gulshan district.

Ershad "is now under our custody, and we may produce her in court today or early tomorrow," Alam said.

The deteriorating relationship between Ershad and her husband has been making headlines in recent weeks in Bangladeshi newspapers.

On Thursday, Ershad, Bangladesh's military ruler between 1982 and 1990, expelled his wife from his centrist Jatiya Party, the third largest party in parliament.