Gulam Rabbani :
The convicted persons of the Pilkhana carnage case have been exempted from the huge costing of filing appeal petitions against the High Court judgement.
Following a petition, the Appellate Division recently gave the opportunity to the convicts to file appeal petitions against the High Court verdict by simply submitting a petition without the paper books, said Advocate Aminul Islam, a concerned lawyer of the case.
After getting the opportunity about 70/80 convicts have already filed appeal petitions with the apex court, added the lawyer.
Earlier the family members and relatives of the convicted persons of the Pilkhana carnage case had fallen into an anxious over the cost of filing an appeal against the High Court verdict.
A copy of the 30,000-page full judgment of the High
Court in this brutal murder case costs around Tk three lakh.
If a full appeal petition is prepared by annexing the lower court verdict, witnesses’ statements, cross-examinations and other documents then the number of pages will go up to 65,000. As a result, the total cost of filing an appeal will be over Tk 10 lakh.
Advocate Aminul Islam who on January 6 this year filed an appeal petition with the Appellate Division on behalf of nine convicted persons of the case said the petition has cost them around Tk 15 lakh as they had to collect photocopies of huge documents for filing the appeal.
The high costing of filing a petition had thrown the family members and relatives of the convicted persons in hardship, added the lawyer.
The lawyer said, “We had to spend more than Tk 2.5 lakh to collect the certified copies of the High Court verdict in the case. And more than Tk 12 lakh was needed for preparing the paper books of the case. In all, about Tk 15 lakh has been spent till filing the appeal petition.”
A paper book that contains all details of a case, trial proceedings, statements, evidence, orders, verdict and other relevant documents is necessary for the High Court division or Appellate Division to hear and dispose of a death reference or an appeal.
Indicating the high cost in filing an appeal the lawyer said that it would not possible for many convicts to bear the cost. That is why they have made an appeal to the Chief Justice. In the petition, they sought an opportunity to file an appeal against the High Court verdict by simply submitting a petition without the paper books.
Considering their petition the Appellate Division gave the other convict persons to file appeal petitions without annexing the paper books as it has already submitted in one case, the lawyer said.
Meanwhile, the state has also filed 20 separate leave to appeal petitions in December 2020 with the Appellate Division challenging the HC verdict that acquitted 75 accused and commuted death sentence of eight convicts to life imprisonment in the BDR carnage case.
The trial court on November 5 in 2013 gave death sentences to 150 BDR soldiers and two civilians, and jailed 160 others for life for their role and involvement in the carnage. It also handed down rigorous imprisonment to 256 people, mostly BDR soldiers.
The trial court acquitted the remaining 277 accused, but the government later appealed against the acquittal of 69 of them.
The trial court passed the judgment after examining 654 out of 1,354 prosecution witnesses in the biggest criminal case in the history of the country.
Later the High Court in November 2017 confirmed death for 139 convicts out of 152 convicts who were given capital punishment by the lower court in Pilkhana carnage case.
The HC also gave life term imprisonment to 185 accused and jailed other 200 accused for different terms and acquitted 45 accused.
Among the lower court’s death convicts, the HC commuted death of eight to life-term imprisonment and acquitted four others. Another death row convict died earlier.
The HC upheld the life term imprisonment of 146 out of 160 convicts who were given the punishment by the lower court. Among the remaining life term convicts, the HC acquitted 12 and two life term convicts died earlier.
Among the 256 convicts of different jail terms by the lower courts, the HC gave jail to 184 accused for 10 years, to 8 accused for 7 years, to 4 accused for 3 years and acquitted 29 accused. 28 convicts did not appeal to the High Court and 3 died earlier.
The HC gave life term imprisonment to another 31 accused and jailed to 4 accused for 7 years considering appeal petitions by the government against 69 accused out of 277 who were acquitted by the lower court. The HC also dismissed 34 appeals by the government.
The convicted persons of the Pilkhana carnage case have been exempted from the huge costing of filing appeal petitions against the High Court judgement.
Following a petition, the Appellate Division recently gave the opportunity to the convicts to file appeal petitions against the High Court verdict by simply submitting a petition without the paper books, said Advocate Aminul Islam, a concerned lawyer of the case.
After getting the opportunity about 70/80 convicts have already filed appeal petitions with the apex court, added the lawyer.
Earlier the family members and relatives of the convicted persons of the Pilkhana carnage case had fallen into an anxious over the cost of filing an appeal against the High Court verdict.
A copy of the 30,000-page full judgment of the High
Court in this brutal murder case costs around Tk three lakh.
If a full appeal petition is prepared by annexing the lower court verdict, witnesses’ statements, cross-examinations and other documents then the number of pages will go up to 65,000. As a result, the total cost of filing an appeal will be over Tk 10 lakh.
Advocate Aminul Islam who on January 6 this year filed an appeal petition with the Appellate Division on behalf of nine convicted persons of the case said the petition has cost them around Tk 15 lakh as they had to collect photocopies of huge documents for filing the appeal.
The high costing of filing a petition had thrown the family members and relatives of the convicted persons in hardship, added the lawyer.
The lawyer said, “We had to spend more than Tk 2.5 lakh to collect the certified copies of the High Court verdict in the case. And more than Tk 12 lakh was needed for preparing the paper books of the case. In all, about Tk 15 lakh has been spent till filing the appeal petition.”
A paper book that contains all details of a case, trial proceedings, statements, evidence, orders, verdict and other relevant documents is necessary for the High Court division or Appellate Division to hear and dispose of a death reference or an appeal.
Indicating the high cost in filing an appeal the lawyer said that it would not possible for many convicts to bear the cost. That is why they have made an appeal to the Chief Justice. In the petition, they sought an opportunity to file an appeal against the High Court verdict by simply submitting a petition without the paper books.
Considering their petition the Appellate Division gave the other convict persons to file appeal petitions without annexing the paper books as it has already submitted in one case, the lawyer said.
Meanwhile, the state has also filed 20 separate leave to appeal petitions in December 2020 with the Appellate Division challenging the HC verdict that acquitted 75 accused and commuted death sentence of eight convicts to life imprisonment in the BDR carnage case.
The trial court on November 5 in 2013 gave death sentences to 150 BDR soldiers and two civilians, and jailed 160 others for life for their role and involvement in the carnage. It also handed down rigorous imprisonment to 256 people, mostly BDR soldiers.
The trial court acquitted the remaining 277 accused, but the government later appealed against the acquittal of 69 of them.
The trial court passed the judgment after examining 654 out of 1,354 prosecution witnesses in the biggest criminal case in the history of the country.
Later the High Court in November 2017 confirmed death for 139 convicts out of 152 convicts who were given capital punishment by the lower court in Pilkhana carnage case.
The HC also gave life term imprisonment to 185 accused and jailed other 200 accused for different terms and acquitted 45 accused.
Among the lower court’s death convicts, the HC commuted death of eight to life-term imprisonment and acquitted four others. Another death row convict died earlier.
The HC upheld the life term imprisonment of 146 out of 160 convicts who were given the punishment by the lower court. Among the remaining life term convicts, the HC acquitted 12 and two life term convicts died earlier.
Among the 256 convicts of different jail terms by the lower courts, the HC gave jail to 184 accused for 10 years, to 8 accused for 7 years, to 4 accused for 3 years and acquitted 29 accused. 28 convicts did not appeal to the High Court and 3 died earlier.
The HC gave life term imprisonment to another 31 accused and jailed to 4 accused for 7 years considering appeal petitions by the government against 69 accused out of 277 who were acquitted by the lower court. The HC also dismissed 34 appeals by the government.
