UNB, Dhaka: The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday upheld the death penalty of condemned war criminal Mir Quasem Ali for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. A five-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha, will pronounce the judgment. The other judges of the bench are Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique, Justice Mirza Hussain Haider and Justice Bazlur Rahman. The apex court upheld the punishment on one count of charge and acquitted him on another. After the closure of arguments, the Appellate Division on February 24 first set March 2 for delivering the judgment but later shifted the date to March 8. The appeal hearing of Mir Quasem Ali began on February 9. Attorney General Mahbubey Alam represented the state while Khandker Mahbub Hossain stood for the Jamaat leader during the appeal hearing. On November 30, 2014, Mir Quasem Ali filed the appeal with the SC challenging the death penalty awarded to him by the International Crimes Tribunal-2 for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971. On November 2 the same year, the tribunal had condemned the Jamaat-e-Islami leader to death for his crimes against humanity during the war. Meanwhile, the attorney general expressed the hope that the court will uphold the capital punishment of Mir Quasem Ali. “Like other cases, we’ve submitted our written arguments in this case, too. We hope the court will deliver fair judgment tomorrow,” he said. While briefing reporters at the Supreme Court on Monday, the chief state law officer said the speech of a minister, politician or a lawyer does not influence the trial proceedings. “The court conducts the trial proceedings based on evidence and witnesses.” Replying to a query, he said it is not right that the lower court verdict will always be upheld by the Appellate Division. “If the case is so, there’s no need for the Appellate Division.” Asked whether he would lodge any written complaint with the court against the two ministers for their controversial remarks about the chief justice, Mahbubey Alam ducked the question, saying, “I’ll make no comment.” On the other hand, Mir Quasem Ali’s counsel Khandker Mahbub Hossain said they would accept what verdict the court delivers after reviewing evidence and witnesses. About the comments of the two ministers, he hoped that the court will take actions in this regard “because people will lose their faith in the judiciary following such comments.” Earlier on Saturday, Food Minister Qamrul Islam and Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque demanded resignation of the chief justice for his reported remarks that ‘the prosecution is doing politics with the trial of condemned war criminal and Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Quasem Ali’. The two ministers made the demand at a roundtable discussion organised by Ekatorrer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee in the city.
