Staff Reporter :
The Supreme Court has released full text of its verdict that upheld the death sentence given to war crimes convict and Jamaat-e-Islami’s Ameer Maulana Matiur Rahman Nizami for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971.
The Appellate Division of the SC released the 153-page judgement on Tuesday after its four judges signed the verdict. The judges are Chief Justice SK Sinha, Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana, Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain and Justice Hasan Foez Siddique.
A copy of the full verdict was sent to the Registrar Office of the International Crimes Tribunal in the evening, said SC Additional Registrar Arunav Chakraborty.
Hours after receiving the full verdict, the tribunal issued death warrant against the Jamaat leader.
Copies of the full verdict will be dispatched to the jail authorities and the Dhaka district magistrate. Home Ministry will also be informed.
However, Nizami will get the chance to file a review petition against the verdict within 15 days. Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said that the Jamaat Chief could move a review petition with the Supreme Court within 15 days of receiving the copy of the full verdict.
If his review petition is rejected, he will get a chance to seek Presidential clemency. If Nizami decides not to seek clemency, his execution process will begin.
Meanwhile, defence lawyer Advocate Khandker Mahbub Hossain said that they would file a review petition for commuting the punishment.
Nizami is the third former minister after Jamaat leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and BNP leader Salauddin Quader Chowdhury to get death penalty for their crimes during the war. He will be the second Al-Badr top leader after Mojaheed to walk to the gallows.
On January 6 last, the four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha upheld the death sentence of the Jamaat Ameer. The SC bench unanimously upheld the death penalty for masterminding the killing of intellectuals and involvement in two incidents of mass killing of over 500 people in Pabna in 1971, paving the way for his execution.
On October 29 in 2014, the International Crimes Tribunal-1 sentenced Nizami to death for committing crimes against humanity, including genocide and the murder of intellectuals, during the Liberation War.
The tribunal sentenced Nizami, the 1971 commander-in-chief of Al Badr, a secret killing squad of Jamaate-e-Islami, the capital punishment each on four counts of charges of war crimes, terming Al Badr a criminal outfit.
The Supreme Court upheld his death penalty for three of the four counts of charges while he was acquitted for one.
The SC upheld his life term imprisonment for two charges, out of four in connection with the arrest, detention, torture, and murder of three people, including Maulana Kasim Uddin of Pabna Zila School on June 4 in 1971, complicity in torture, murder and rape at Mohammadpur Physical Training Institute in Dhaka, and murder of Badi, Rumi Jewel and Azad at Old MP Hostel in Dhaka on August 30 in 1971. The apex court acquitted the Jamaat leader of two other charges.
Nizami filed an appeal with the Supreme Court on November 23 in 2014 challenging the death sentence and claimed himself innocent and sought to be cleared of the charges.
