2 get death penalty, three life term
International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) handed down death sentence to two war criminals while life term imprisonment to three others for their crimes against humanity at Raznagar upazila in Moulvibazar during the War of Liberation in 1971.
A three-member tribunal bench led by ICT Chairman Mohammad Shahinur Islam delivered the verdict on Wednesday morning.
The death-row convicts are Nesar Ali and Wazaer Ahmed Chowdhury. On the other hand, Shamsul Alam Chowdhury, Mobarak and Yunus Ahmed got life term imprisonment.
Among the convicts, Yunus Ahmed and Wazaer Ahmed Chowdhury are in jail and the others are absconding.
Nesar Ali and Ujer Ahmed were awarded death sentences on charge No 5 out of total five charges for killing 14 members of a Hindu family at Kholagram in Rajnagar upazila during the Liberation War.
The 202-page judgment was read out by the tribunal judges starting from 10:30am.
The ICT-1 on November 20, 2017 kept the verdict on CAV (curia advisory vault, a Latin legal term meaning the court awaits verdict), meaning the court can pass judgment any day.
The ICT-1 on June 9, 2016 took five charges pressed by the prosecution into cognizance.
Hearing on charge framing was held on November 2 of the same year.
The tribunal on December 8, 2016 indicted the five in the crimes against humanity case.
According to the prosecution, the accused ran havoc in the locality during the War of Liberation as the leaders of local Razakar Bahini and Al-Badr.