Shapla Chattar killings case: Charge framing against Hasina, 40 others on 7 October
Tribunal allows proceedings against absconding accused in absence.
Highlights:
- Hasina among 30 accused yet to surrender
- Prosecution seeks trial in their absence
- Eleven accused produced before tribunal
- 58 deaths cited in prosecution allegations
The International Crimes Tribunal-2 has set 7 October for a hearing on the framing of charges against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 40 others in a crimes against humanity case over the 2013 Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Dhaka's Motijheel.
The tribunal, headed by Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, fixed the date today (16 September).
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
During the hearing, the prosecution told the tribunal that notices had been published in newspapers asking 30 absconding accused, including Hasina, to surrender, but none had done so.
The prosecution therefore sought permission to proceed with the case in their absence and appoint state-appointed lawyers to represent them.
Eleven accused currently in custody were produced before the tribunal under tight security this morning.
They are former ministers Abdul Latif Siddiqui, Abdur Razzaque, Dipu Moni and Hasanul Haq Inu; former state minister Shamsul Haque Tuku; former inspector general of police AKM Shahidul Haque; former major general Ziaul Ahsan; former DIG Abdul Jalil Mandal; Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee President Shahriar Kabir; former Ekattor Media Limited Managing Director Mozammel Haque Babu; and journalist Farzana Rupa.
According to the prosecution, 58 people were killed in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Chattogram and Cumilla in incidents surrounding the Hefazat-e-Islam rally on 5 May 2013.
The investigation agency identified 32 of the dead in Dhaka, 20 in Narayanganj, five in Chattogram and one in Cumilla, the prosecution said.
Besides the 11 accused already in custody, the case also names former home minister Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir; Awami League Presidium Member Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim; Awami League Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif; former information minister Hasan Mahmud; Awami League Joint General Secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim; former state minister Mrinal Kanti Das; former Awami League Joint General Secretary Jahangir Kabir Nanak; former minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya; former Jubo League Chairman Omar Faruk Chowdhury; former lawmaker Salauddin Mahmud; and Gonojagoron Mancha spokesperson Dr Imran H Sarker.
Other accused include former IGPs Hasan Mahmud Khandker, Mohammad Javed Patwary and Benazir Ahmed; former RAB director general Md Mokhlesur Rahman; former army chief General Aziz Ahmed; former RAB additional director general for operations Lt Gen Md Mujibur Rahman; former additional IGPs Sheikh Muhammad Maruf Hasan, Mahbub Hossain and Monirul Islam; former DMP officials Md Anwar Hossain, Ashrafuzzaman, SM Mehedi Hasan and Md Asaduzzaman; former DIGs Harun-or-Rashid, Biplab Kumar Sarker and Syed Nurul Islam; retired additional superintendent of police SM Shibli Noman; and former Motijheel Police Station officer-in-charge BM Forman Ali.
