|
Hasina breaks
down
Dhaka: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday broke down and was "overwhelmed with emotion" as Bangladesh's apex court upheld the death sentence on five of her father, Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman, killers, 34 years after his murder. "The Prime Minister cried after hearing the verdict. She was overwhelmed with emotion," said Syed Ashraful Islam, ruling Awami League's deputy leader. "This verdict has established justice and rule of law in the country. Our government will act on the verdict and bring back the absconding killers wherever they are," he said. — PTI |
Dhaka, November 19
Bangladesh's Supreme Court today rejected the appeals of five former army officers and confirmed death sentence on seven others, who are living abroad, for killing the country's founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members
34 years ago.
A five-judge bench of the apex court delivered the judgement amid tight security on the court premises and key establishments across the country, bringing to an end a long court battle on an emotive issue.
Sheikh Mujib, officially referred to with the honorific Bangabandhu, who was then the country's president, was killed in a coup on the morning of August 15, 1975, less than four years after he led a movement that culminated in the emergence of Bangladesh after its violent separation from Pakistan.
In its judgement, the apex court ruled that the incidents of August 15, 1975, were “a simple murder and it was not a result of mutiny”.
“Criminal conspiracy was committed to murder Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and this was not committed for any mutiny,” Star Online reported.
Also gunned down or bludgeoned in three separate attacks were most of Mujib's family members, close relatives, political associates, Mujib's security chief and personal staff.
Referred to as “killer majors”, since most of them were junior officers, the condemned men are Lt-Col Syed Farooq-ur Rahman (dismissed), Lt-Col Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan (retd), Lt-Col Muhiuddin Ahmed (retd), Lt-Col A.K.M. Mahiuddin Ahmed (retd) , Maj Bazlul Huda (retd), Lt-Col Khandaker Abdur Rashid (retd), Maj Shariful Haque Dalim (retd), Lt-Col A.M. Rashed Chowdhury (retd), Lt-Col S.H.M.B. Noor Chowdhury (retd), Lt-Col Md. Abdul Aziz Pasha (retd), Capt Abdul Mazed (retd) and Risaldar Moslemuddin (retd).
Some of them had later openly claimed to have carried out the killings in what they described as national interest.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Mujib's elder daughter and one of the two survivors, revived the court trial after she returned to power in January.
Sheikh Rehana, the other surviving daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in her reaction, said it was important that the verdict had been upheld by the Supreme Court.
— IANS
