Death sentences for six in Ashulia killings during July uprising

PNN News Desk, Dhaka:

The International Crimes Tribunal-2 has sentenced six individuals, including former Member of Parliament Muhammad Saiful Islam, to death for the killing and burning of six people and the murder of another during the July uprising in Ashulia, Savar. In the same case, seven others were sentenced to life imprisonment, two received seven-year rigorous imprisonment, and key witness Afzal was acquitted.

On Thursday (February 5), a three-member bench led by Tribunal-2 Chairman Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury announced the verdict. The other two members of the bench were Justice Md. Manjurul Bashid and Justice Nur Mohammad Shahriar Kabir.

Along with the verdict, the court ordered the confiscation of all movable and immovable properties of former MP Saiful Islam, to be distributed among the underprivileged.

Strict security measures were deployed around the International Crimes Tribunal and the Supreme Court area in response to the verdict, with the presence of police, RAB, BGB, army, and various intelligence agencies.

The accused in the case include former Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) of Dhaka, Md. Abdullahil Kafi, former ASP (Savar Circle) Md. Shahidul Islam, then Detective Branch (DB) inspector Arafat Hossain, SI Malek, SI Arafat Uddin, ASI Kamrul Hasan, SI Sheikh Abzalul Haque, and constable Mukul.

Meanwhile, former MP Muhammad Saiful Islam, former Dhaka Range DIG Syed Nurul Islam, former SP Md. Asaduzzaman Ripon, then Officer-in-Charge of Ashulia Police AFM Sayeed Rony, former police inspector Masudur Rahman, police inspector (Operations) Nirmal Kumar Das, former ASI Bishwajit Saha, and local Awami League leader Rony Bhuiyan remain fugitives.

The prosecution of the case was led by Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam along with several other prosecutors. Four state-appointed lawyers represented four of the accused. After the conclusion of arguments on January 20 of this year, the case awaited a verdict.

The prosecution formally named 16 individuals in the case, of whom eight were arrested and are in jail.

According to the case documents, on August 5, 2024, during the student movement, six youths were killed in police firing in Ashulia. Their bodies were later taken out in a police van and burned. During this horrifying incident, one person was alive and was also set on fire with petrol. One more activist was killed the day before.

The case was filed at the International Crimes Tribunal on September 11, 2024, under charges of crimes against humanity. The case included a 313-page document, 168 pages of evidence, and two pendrives as digital evidence. A total of 62 witnesses were listed, of which 26 were examined, concluding the trial proceedings.