DHAKA: With the verdict of many war criminals, the outgoing year 2014 was eventful to the people of the country.
Followed by the year 2013 when the verdict of the war criminals first passed by the ICT, the year 2014 as a result was historical for the nation as well.
A large number of Jamaat leaders, including its Ameer, few BNP leaders and ousted Awami League (AL) leader were given capital punishment for their involvement in the war crimes during the Liberation War in 1971.
However, on October 23 in 2014, War crimes convict Ghulam Azam died.
Azharul Islam verdict
On December 30, 2014 , the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 awarded death penalty to Jamaat-e-Islami Assistant Secretary General ATM Azharul Islam for committing crimes against humanity and other offences during the 1971 Liberation War.
A three-member judge panel led by Justice Enayetur Rahim handed down the verdict.
The tribunal found Azharul, an Al-Badr commander of Rangpur, former president of the Rangpur district unit Islami Chhatra Sangha, then-student wing of the Jamaat, guilty in five out of six charges, including genocide, killing, rape, abduction, forced confinement, torture, and looting, committed during the Liberation War.
Ghulam Azam verdict
Earlier on July 15 in 2013, ICT-1 sentenced the former Jamaat-e-Islami chief Ghulam Azam to 90 years in prison for masterminding crimes against humanity, genocide and other offences during liberation war.
On May 13, 2012, the tribunal indicted him on five charges of crimes against humanity for murdering and torturing of unarmed people, planning, incitement and complicity to commit genocide in 1971.
Kamaruzzman verdict 
On November 3, 2014, The Supreme Court Appellate Division upheld the death sentence against Jamaat assistant secretary general Muhammad Kamaruzzaman.
A four-member SC bench of the Appellate Division led by Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the verdict on an appeal filed by Jamaat leader Muhammad Kamaruzzaman challenging death penalty awarded by ICT-2.
On May 9, 2013, the ICT-2, led-by Justice Obaidul Hassan, awarded capital punishment to the Jamaat assistant secretary general for his crimes against humanity during country’s Liberation War in 1971.
Five out of all seven allegations brought against Kamaruzzaman were proved beyond doubt.
Khokon ‘Razakar’ verdict
On November 13, BNP leader Zahid Hossain Khokon alias Khokon Razakar was awarded death penalty for his involvement in crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.
The three-member ICT-1 led by Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order.
A total of 10 allegations out of 11 charges, including murdering 16 women and 50 children, genocide, arson, rape, loot and forcible religious conversion against Khokan were proved unequivocally.
Mobarak verdict
On November 24 in 2014, ICT-1 pronounced its sixth verdict awarding death penalty to ousted Awami League leader, also former Jamaat leader Mobarak Hossain of Brahmanbaria for his crimes against humanity in 1971.
The tribunal chief Justice M Enayetur Rahim gave “Razakar commander” the capital punishment on the charges of number-1 and 3 among five brought against him.
Nizami Verdict
On October 29 in 2014, ICT-1 gave verdict awarding death penalty of Jamaat chief Motiur Rahman Nizami for his involvement in crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.
Tribunal chairman M Enayetur Rahim awarded death sentence to Nizami in second, fourth, sixth and 16th numbers of charges.
Mir Quasem verdict
On November 2 in 2014, the top financier of Jamaat-e-Islami and also intellectuals’ killer Mir Quasem Ali will be hanged for his crimes against humanity committed during the country’s war of independence in 1971.
A three-member judge panel of ICT-2 led by Justice Obaidul Hassan awarded death sentence to him in 11th and 12th number of charges.
On December 23 in 2014, ICT-2 awarded death penalty to Syed Mohammad Qaisar, a former Jatiya Party state
minister, for committing crimes against humanity and other offences during the 1971 Liberation War.
A three-member judge panel led by Justice Obaidul Hasan gave the capital punishment in seven charges brought against him.
Sayedee’s SC verdict
On September 17 in 2014, Jamaat leader Delawar Hossain Sayedee was sentenced to imprisonment unto death for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971.
The Supreme Court handed down the final verdict differing on ICT’s one that sentenced the war criminal death penalty.
A five-member judge’s panel of the apex court led-by Chief Justice Mozammel Hossain delivered verdict in response to the appeals filed by Jamaat leader Sayedee.
On February 28 in 2013, the ICT-1 awarded death penalty in two charges although the eight charges were proved against him.
Sayedee was involved in the incidents like killing, looting at Pararhat, raping of female and converting Hindu people into Muslims in Pirojpur area.
10-truck Arm haul verdict
On January 30 in 2014, a Chittagong court awarded death penalty to 14 people, including Nizami and Babar for smuggling 10 truckloads of arms into the port city during the last BNP-led government’s tenure.
On April 2, 2004, the police seized 4,930 types of sophisticated firearms, 27,020 grenades, 840 rocket launchers, 300 rockets, 2,000 grenade launching tubes, 6,392 magazines and 11,40,520 bullets when they were being loaded on to 10 trucks from two engine-boats at the jetty of the Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Limited (CUFL).
Abdul Jabbar, Abdus Subhan’s verdict to be pronounced
The verdict of some other cases also waited to be pronounced.
ICT-1 will deliver its verdict any day in war crime case against absconding former Jatiya party MP Abdul Jabbar and Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdus Subhan as trial proceedings ended.
August 21 grenade attack case underway
The trial of August 21 grenade attack case has achieved progress in this year.
On August 21, 2004, a grisly grenade attack on an Awami League rally left 24 people, including Ivy Rahman, wife of late President Zillur Rahman, dead and over 300 others injured.
Awami League president Sheikh Hasina survived the attack.
Following the incident, Motijheel police filed the two cases — one for the killing and the other for explosion.
Kibria killing case underway
The trial proceeding of Kibria killing case is also underway and Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of police submitted a supplement charge-sheet in former finance minister Shah AMS Kibria murder case accusing 35 people on November 13 this year.
Five people, including the former Awami League minister, were killed in a grenade attack at a rally in Boddyer Bazar area of the district’s Sadar upzila on January 27 in 2005.
Narayanganj seven-murder case
In the gruesome Narayanganj seven-murder case, some RAB officials confessed their guilt before the court.
However, the Supreme Court has taken away Crime Investigation Department (CID) from the investigation of the case.
The probe committee of RAB submitted the report saying that former commander Tarek Sayeed and two company commanders Arif Hossain and MM Rana of RAB-11 had a direct connection in the killing.
On April 30, Narayanganj City Corporation Councilor Nazrul Islam, senior lawyer Chandan Kumar Sarkar and five others were found dead floating on River Shitalkkhya after 3-day of their abduction.
British journalist David Bergman case for derogatory post
On December 2 this year, ICT ruled that British journalist David Bergman was guilty of contempt for demeaning the tribunal through derogatory post on his blog.
The court ordered him to pay a fine of 5,000 taka or go to prison for seven days.
The ICT-2 led by Justice Obaidul Hasan passed the order sentencing him “simple imprisonment until the rising of the court.”
Bergman, a special correspondent of English daily New Age, is also son-in-law of Dr Kamal Hossain.
Regarding framing crimes against humanity charges against Delwar Hossain Sayedee by the tribunal on October 2, 2011, ‘The New Age’ published Bergman’s write-up titled ‘A crucial period for ICT’ in its editorial page.
According to the new plea, journalist Bergman, on his own website (bangladeshwarcrimes.blogspot.com), released several controversial articles like ‘Azad Judgment analysis -1: In absentia trial & Defense inadequacy’ and ‘Azad Judgment analysis -II: Tribunal’s assumption’.
BDST: 2242 HRS, DEC 31, 2014
