Staff Reporter :
The High Court on Wednesday upheld the death penalty of 10 leaders and activists of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (Huji) for attempting to kill Awami League president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by planting a 76 kg bomb at Kotalipara of Gopalganj district in 2000.
The High Court also upheld the life term imprisonment of one convict and 14 years’ imprisonment of two convicts. But it acquitted one convict who was also given 14 years by the trial court in the case.
The bench of Justice Jahangir Hossain and Justice Md Badruzzaman delivered the verdict after hearing the death references of the case and the appeal petitons filed by the convicts challenging the lower court verdict against them.
The death convicts are: Wasim Akter alias Tarek, Rashed alias Abul Kalam, Md Yusuf Alias Abu Musa Harun, Sheikh Farid alias Maulana Shawkat Osman, Hafez Zahangir Alam Badar, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Hafez Selim Howlader, Hafez Maulana Yahia, Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hye and Maulana Abdur Rauf alias Abu Omar.
Four of the death convicts, Md Yusuf Alias Abu Musa Harun, Hafez Zahangir Alam Badar, Mufti Shafiqur Rahman and Mufti Abdul Hye, are absconding.
The HC upheld the life term imprisonment of Mehedi Hasan alias Abdur Wadud. It also upheld the lower court verdict that sentenced Anisul Islam alias Anis and Mohibullah alias Mofizur Rahman to 14 years’ imprisonment.
The HC, however, ordered the authorities to release Anisul Islam and Mohibullah as they had already served 14 years’ jail sentence.
The HC bench acquitted Sarwar Hossain Mia as the state has failed to prove the allegations brought against him.
Attorney General AM Amin Uddin, and Deputy Attorney General Dr Md Bashir Ullah appeared for the state in the hearing of the case, while Amulya Kumar Sarker placed arguments as state defense lawyer for the absconding convicts and lawyers SM Shahjahan, Mohammad Ahsan and Mohammad Nasiruddin stood for the convicts in jail.
AM Amin Uddin prayed to the HC to uphold the trial court verdict in the case, saying that the convicted accused have committed a very serious and unpardonable offence by planting 76kg bomb in order to kill AL President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The defence lawyers prayed to the HC to acquit their clients, saying that the trial court has delivered the verdict only on the basis of the confessional statement made by Huji leader Mufti Abdul Hannan.
The 76kg bomb was recovered at Sheikh Lutfor Rahman Ideal College of Kotalipara in Gopalganj on July 21, 2000. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was supposed to address a rally there the next day.
The then sub-inspector Nur Hossain of Kotalipara Police Station filed the case under the Explosive Substances Act following the incident.
The Speedy Trial Tribunal-2 in Dhaka on August 20, 2017, awarded death sentence to 10 leaders and activists of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami in the case. The court also sentence one accused for life term imprisonment and three other to 14 years’ imprisonment.
Huji leader Mufti Hannan was found guilty but was acquitted as he was executed on April 12, 2017 at Kashimpur High-Security Prison for killing three people and injuring former British high commissioner to Bangladesh and a dozen others in Sylhet.
Death references and other documents of the case were sent to the High Court for examination on August 27 in 2017.
The High Court on September 16 in 2020 resumed hearing on the death references and appeal petitions of the sensational case. After concluding the hearing on February 1 this year the High Court fixed February 17 to deliver the judgment.
