DHAKA: The Supreme Court (SC)’s Appellate Division fixed Wednesday as the date of next appeal hearing of death row convict Jamaat leader Motiur Rahman Nizami for his crimes against humanity during the country’s war of independence in 1971.

The Division announced the date on Tuesday after the completion of the second day’s hearing of the appeal petition filed by the convict.

A four-member bench, led by Chief Justice (CJ) Surendra Kumar Sinha was present at the appeal hearing.

The other members of the bench included Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique and Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain.

Defense lawyer SM Shahjahan presented his arguments during the hearing.

Earlier, the Appellate Division held the hearing on September 9 and fixed November 3 as the next hearing date.

Due to absence of a senior justice, the hearing could not be held on November 3.

On February 24 in 2015, the Appellate Division ordered the prosecution and defendant to submit Nizami’s appeal synopses by two weeks.

Later, both parties submitted Nizami’s appeal synopsis before the apex court.

On August 18, Zainul Abedin Tuhin ‘Advocate on Record’ sought two-week time after vacation of the apex court September 18-October 31.

Earlier on October 29 in 2014, the 3-member International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 handed down the death sentence to Nizami on charges of numbers 2, 4, 6, and 16, and life-term imprisonment on 1, 3, 7 and 8 numbers of charges.

On November 23 of that year, convict Motiur Rahman Nizami challenged the death penalty.

Defense lawyer submitted an appeal plea of 6,252 pages to the Supreme Court Appellate Division showing 168 causes and sought acquittal from the charges.

BDST: 1558 HRS, NOV 17, 2015
SR/RR/SMS

** Nizami appeal hearing underway