Court Correspondent :
The Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 of Dhaka yesterday sentenced twenty people to death and five others to life-term imprisonment in the case filed over the killing of Abrar Fahad at a residential hall of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) in 2019 over his Facebook post.
Judge Abu Zafar Md Kamaruzzaman of the tribunal-1 handed down the verdict on Wednesday noon.
Earlier, 22 accused in the case were produced in the court about 9:15 am from Keraniganj Central Jail.
On November 14, the tribunal fixed November 28 to pronounce the verdict after the prosecution and defense lawyers had concluded their final arguments in the case in presence of 22 accused out of 25 in the dock. But the court deferred the delivery of the verdict in the case to December 8 as it was not ready for the delivery on that day.
All the accused in the case are leaders and activists of the Bangladesh Chhatra League, the ruling Awami League-backed student organisation.
On October 7, 2019, Abrar was beaten to death by leaders and activists of the then-BUET unit of the BCL reportedly over his posts on Facebook criticizing the government’s deals with India. The killing sparked nationwide protests.
On November 13, 2019, the Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court of Dhaka took cognizance of the charge sheet filed by the Detective Branch against 25 BCL leaders and activists.
The case was, later, transferred to the speedy trial tribunal following a plea of the complainant.
The other accused, Mustaba Rafid, Muhammad Morshed-Uz-Zaman Mondol alias Alias and Ehtashamul Rabbi Tanim, were absconding since the incident.
Earlier, 46 prosecution witnesses, including the complainant of the case, testified in the tribunal.
On October 7 of 2019, Abrar Fahad, a second-year student of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), was beaten to death by a group of BUET unit’s Chhatra League men in a dormitory.
Abrar’s father Barkatatullah filed the murder case in this connection with the Chowkbazar Police Station on October 7 of the same year.
Inspector Md Wahiduzzaman of the Detective Brach of Police submitted the charge sheet of the case to the Chief Metropolitan Court of Dhaka against 25 BUET students on November 13, 2019.
During the investigation, eight of the accused gave confessional statements to different Magaistrate Courts on different dates under the Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. They are -Ifti Mosharraf Sakalk, Meftahul Islam Jeon, Anik Sarker, Muzahidur Rahman, Mehedi Hasan Robin, Khankar Tabakkarul Islam Tanvir, Moniruzzaman Monir and ASM Nasmus Sadat. Later, accused Morshed Amotta Islam surrendered to the court and sought bail while the court sent him to the jail rejecting his bail.
The 20 death sentenced convicts include- Mehedi Hasan Russel, Anik Sarker, Afti Mosharraf Sakar, Md Mehedi Sasan Robi, Muhtasim Fuad, Mo Moniruzzaman Monir, Amit Saha, Shamsul Aferin Rafat and SM Mahmud Setu.
Besides them, other five convicts were sentence to life-term sentences. On September 15, last year, the tribunal framed charges against the accused.
The prosecution expressed satisfaction over the verdict in the BUET student Abrar Fahad murder case while defense claimed that the judgement was not appropriate. They decided to appeal in the appeal court.
The court said in his observation that the prosecution was quite able to prove the allegations of all the convicts. The punishment was given to stop the repeal of such offences, the court added.
“This incident has traumatized people of Bangladesh. The tribunal on Wednesday awarded highest punishement to the convict to prevent any recurrence of such brutality,” said Chief Public Prosecutor Mosharraf Hossain Kajal.
“We are satisfied with the verdict,” Kajal said while talking to reporters on the court premises after the verdict was delivered. Meanwhile, the defense lawyer expressed dissatisfaction over the verdict.
