Energy Bangla - Bangladesh: Five killers of Mujib Hanged

Five former army men were hanged at Dhaka Central Jail soon after midnight past Wednesday for killing the country’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and all but two members of his family on August 15, 1975.
   They were hanged after the special Appellate Division Wednesday morning dismissed their petitions for a review of its verdict, clearing the way for the execution of their death sentences.
   The special Appellate Division bench of four judges, headed by the chief justice, Tafazzul Islam, delivered the verdict, dismissing the petitions filed by the five death-row convicts — sacked lieutenant colonel Syed Faruque Rahman, retired lieutenant colonel Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, retired lieutenant colonel Muhiuddin Ahmed, retired lieutenant colonel AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and retired major Bazlul Huda.
   Huda and Mohiuddin (artillery) were sent to the gallows soon after midnight past Wednesday. They were followed by Shahriar and Faruque at 12:30am. Muhiuddin (lancer) was the last convict to walk the gallows at 12:55am.
   The authorities were set to hand over the bodies to respective families at their ancestral homes for burial. Shahriar’s body will be taken to his village in Brahmanbaria, Faruqe’s body to Naogaon, Huda’s body to Alamdanga in Chuadanga and Mohiuddin and Muhiuddin’s bodies to Galachipa in Patuakhali, said sources in the jail administration.
   Autopsies of the executed convicts began in the jail at around 1:45am, senior jail superintendent Tauhidur Rahman adding that the bodies would be sent to their ancestral homes amid tight security after the autopsies.
   The execution of the death sentences took place amid heightened security in and around the jail. But, curious spectators, mostly Awami League activists, in their hundreds gathered at the jail gate. At one point, the entire area was swamped by people eager to hear the news of the executions. They celebrated chanting slogans and flashing V-signs as the serial executions completed.
   Before the execution of the death sentences, relatives met the five convicts at the Dhaka Central Jail after the verdict on Wednesday.
   Tauhidur Rahman told 50 people visited the five convicts and the relatives and friends in small groups met them at the jail gate amid security.
   They were asked by the jail authorities to meet the convicts, Tauhid said.
   According to him, Faruque signed a petition seeking presidential clemency about 6:00pm on Wednesday.
   The petition was sent to the president through the home and law ministries and finally the Prime Minister’s Office The jail authorities got back the president’s order rejecting the petition at about 8:00pm.
   The president on January 17 rejected the petitions filed on January 9 by Mohiuddin, Huda and Muhiuddin seeking mercy.
   Shahriar, however, refused to seek mercy, Tauhidur said.
   After the verdict, the law minister, Shafique Ahmed, also a barrister, told reporters at his ministry the five would be executed by January 31 in accordance with the Jail Code.
   He made the announcement after a meeting, attended by the home minister Sahara Khatun, state minister for law Quamrul Islam, state minister for home Shamsul Haque Tuku, attorney general Mahbubey Alam, chief prosecutor in the case Anisul Huq and inspector general of prisons Brigadier General Ashraful Islam Khan, following the verdict.
   Security around the jail was beefed up at around 9:30pm. Home secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikder, Dhaka metropolitan police commissioner AKM Shahidul Haque, Dhaka civil surgeon Mushfiqur Rahman, district magistrate Zillar Rahman and additional district magistrate Amitav Sarker entered the jail at about by 11;00pm amid speculation about the executions.
   Three hangmen, serving terms in separate cases, were brought to Dhaka Central Jail from Kashimpur jail for carrying out the executions. Five coffins were taken inside the jail about 10:45pm. Five ambulances were also kept ready at the jail gate.
   The law minister said, ‘According to the Jail Code, there is no scope for going beyond January 31 for the execution of the death sentences.’
   Anisul Huq explained the matter by saying that the sentences needed to be executed inside 28 days from the date of the issuance of the death warrants, which were issued on January 3.Defence counsel Abdullah Al Mamun, however, contradicted their explanation.
   According to the Jail Code, a death sentence needs to be executed within 28 days, but not before 21 days, after the date when the jail authorities receive the copy of the final verdict, he told reporters after the verdict.
   As the verdict in the case got its finality with the Appellate Division’s verdict on Wednesday, the timeframe for the execution needs to be counted from Wednesday, he said. ‘The execution of the convicts before 21 days would amount to their murder.’
   Anisul, however, said, ‘As the Jail Code stipulates no provision for a review of any verdict, the timeframe for the execution has to be counted from the date of the issuance of the death warrants.’
   Mamun also said the convicts still had the chances for filing petitions with the president seeking clemency and they could be hanged 21 days after rejection of their mercy petitions.
   He also mentioned the case of execution of the six Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh kingpins, including Shaikh Abdur Rahman, in 2007. The kingpins were executed on March 30, 2007 after their mercy petitions were rejected on February 19, 2007 and the Appellate Division the same day dismissed the review petition filed by one of them.
   Shafique and Anis also said two convicts — Faruque and Shahriar — might get the scope to seek presidential clemency as the mercy petitions of the rest three had already been rejected.
   Mamun, however, claimed Mohiuddin, Huda and Muhiuddin had not filed any such petitions as they filed petitions for a review of the verdict in their appeals.
   Huda’s sister Mahfuza Pasha Liza also told reporters that her brother had not filed any mercy petition.
   In Wednesday’s verdict, the court said, ‘Learned counsels in all the petitions iterated the points which were raised and argued in course of hearing of the appeals out of which these review petitions arise. This court by a lengthy judgement repelled those points. These points are not legal grounds for review of a judgement delivered in merit. For the reasons to be stated later on, these review petitions are dismissed.’
   The Appellate Division on November 19, 2009 upheld the High Court verdict that confirmed the death sentences of 12 retired and dismissed army men for killing Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
   The five-member Appellate Division bench headed by Justice Tafazzul Islam delivered the judgement dismissing the appeals filed by five detained death-row convicts against the High Court verdict.
   The death sentences of retired colonel Khandaker Abdur Rashid, retired major Shariful Haque Dalim, retired lieutenant colonel AM Rashed Chowdhury, retired lieutenant colonel SHMB Noor Chowdhury, retired captain Abdul Mazed and retired risaldar Moslemuddin delivered by the High Court stand valid as they are still in hiding.
   The other condemned convict, retired lieutenant colonel Md Abdul Aziz Pasha, reportedly died earlier abroad.
   Before the verdict, security was also heightened in the capital and elsewhere in the country while the condemned prisoners had been under close watch.
   Quazi Golam Rasul, who was the Dhaka district and sessions judge, on November 8, 1998 sentenced to death 15 out of the 20 accused of killing Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and all but two of the family.
   Sheikh Mujib’s personal assistant Muhitul Islam filed the murder case with the Dhanmondi police on October 2, 1996 – 21 years after the killing.
   Eleven people, including Sheikh Mujib, his wife Fazilatunessa Mujib, sons Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and Sheikh Russell, daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal and Rosy Jamal, and brother Sheikh Naser were killed in his house at Dhanmondi early August 15, 1975.
   Two others killed in the house were Detective Branch officer Nurul Islam Khan and sepoy Shamsu of the house guards, who were on duty.
   The president’s military secretary Colonel Jamil, who was rushing to the house of the then president in response to his call, was also killed near the Sobahanbagh mosque.
   Only Mujib’s daughters Sheikh Hasina, now the prime minister and Awami League president, and Sheikh Rehana survived the carnage as they were abroad at the time.
   The High Court on December 14, 2000 delivered a split verdict in the case. Justice M Ruhul Amin, the senior judge of the High Court bench, upheld the death sentences of 10 convicts while the other judge, ABM Khairul Haque, retained the death sentences for all the 15.
   Justice Fazlul Karim in the final High Court verdict in the case on April 30, 2001 upheld death sentences for 12 and acquitted three.
   The Appellate Division on September 23, 2007 allowed the five death-row convicts to appeal against the High Court verdict, delivered in 2001, on five points.
   The army men sentenced by the sessions judge to death are Faruque, Shahriar, Mohiuddin, Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Bazlul Huda, Shariful Huq Dalim, Ahmed Sharful Hossain also named as Shariful Islam, Rashed Chowdhury, AKM Muhiuddin Ahmed, Nur Chowdhury, Aziz Pasha, Kismat Hashem, Nazmul Hossain Anseri, Abdul Mazed and Moslemuddin.
   Shariful, Kismat and Nazmul were acquitted of the charges in the final High Court verdict.
   The government, however, did not file any appeal against the acquittal.
   Faruque, Shahriar, Muhiuddin Ahmed and Bazlul Huda, who were in jail at the time, filed petitions with the Appellate Division seeking permission to appeal against the verdict.
   AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed filed a similar petition after the US government had deported him to Bangladesh from Los Angeles on June 17, 2007.