Awami League President Sheikh Hasina, the first sufferer of the 21 August grenade attack, did no longer mention the title of BNP’s performing chairperson Tarique Rahman in her testimony for the case filed over the attack, BNP lawyers acknowledged on the present time (1 December).
“The case used to be politically driven in opposition to Tarique Rahman and BNP,” acknowledged Barrister Kaiser Kamal, the birthday party’s upright secretary, whereas talking to the media on the court premises following the Excessive Court’s verdict.
He acknowledged, “This case used to be politically applied in opposition to Tarique Rahman and BNP. When Sheikh Hasina Wazed gave her assertion beneath Half 161 [of The Code of Criminal Procedure], Tarique Rahman’s title used to be no longer mentioned there either.
“The roar equipment used to be ancient for political purposes to implicate Tarique Rahman in this case after they [Awami League] got right here to energy,” Kaiser Kamal added.
BNP’s upright secretary acknowledged there could be rarely any evidence in the case when every little thing is blueprint about.
“The 2d confession made by Mufti Hannan has no worth as evidence, and no discover has named Tarique Rahman either. Serious about all these components, the court has acquitted everyone, together with Tarique Rahman,” he added.
The Excessive Court (HC) on the present time scrapped the verdict of the decrease court in the two cases filed over the 21 August grenade attack, acquitting all convicts, together with BNP’s performing chairperson Tarique Rahman and venerable roar minister for home affairs Lutfozzaman Babar.
The bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain delivered the judgment this morning.
Describe in the courtroom in the center of the verdict occupy been Zainul Abedin, BNP’s vice president and senior criminal skilled, and BNP Chairperson’s Advisor and President of the Supreme Court Bar Affiliation, Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon.
Zainul Abedin, additionally the president of the Nationalist Lawyers’ Forum, acknowledged, “Tarique Rahman’s title used to be no longer mentioned wherever in the fee sheet. Later, Abdul Kahar Akand [the last investigating officer] used to be ancient to implicate Tarique Rahman in the case and put together his conviction.
“No one could perchance be sentenced to death or existence imprisonment without roar testimony. After analysing the total aspects, the court felt that these that had appealed and these that could perchance no longer charm could perchance also simply still all be acquitted,” he added.
“Awami League ancient this case politically as they desired to retain Tarique Rahman out of the nation for existence with political intentions. They even desired to sentence him to death. The court realized no evidence to clarify a death sentence for Tarique Rahman,” BNP vice president acknowledged.
“Thru on the present time’s verdict, neither the death sentence nor existence imprisonment stays for somebody,” he added.
Occasions that led to on the present time’s HC verdict
On 21 August 2004, the grenade attack used to be applied, focusing on a rally of the Awami League President Sheikh Hasina on Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital. The attack, which took space in the center of the tenure of the BNP-Jamaat-e-Islami coalition govt, killed 24 of us, together with then Awami League women’s affairs secretary Ivy Rahman.
On 10 October 2018, Deem Shahed Nuruddin of Dhaka’s First Mercurial Trial Tribunal sentenced 19 of us to death, together with BNP leaders Babar and Abdus Salam Pintu, in the two cases filed over the grenade attack.
Apart from, 19 others, together with Tarique, occupy been sentenced to existence imprisonment. One other 11 occupy been sentenced to a quantity of terms of imprisonment.
Later that twelve months, on 27 November, the trial court’s judgment and all needed documents reached the death reference flit of the Excessive Court. The imprisoned accused appealed in opposition to the verdicts of the court.
In December 2022, a Excessive Court bench led by Justice Sahidul Karim started hearing the appeals, detention heart petitions and death references. The bench used to be reconstituted between the hearings, and the original bench restarted the hearing.