In two years since the bloody mutiny of BDR border guards took place on Feb 25-26, 2009, some 1,065 rebel soldiers have been sentenced to imprisonment for different terms ranging from four months to seven years till Thursday. All these convicts were also fined Tk 100 each by different special courts set up across the country to try the rebel border guards.
A total 57 cases including 11 in Dhaka were filed in connection with the mutiny at all but nine units of the Bangladesh Rifles, now re-named as Border Guard Bangladesh.
In September 2009, the government at an inter-ministerial meeting decided that the soldiers accused of mutiny at the BGB headquarters at Pilkhana in Dhaka and other outposts across the country on February 25-26, 2009 would be tried by the Special Courts set up under Bangladesh Rifles Order 1972.
The meeting also decided that the soldiers and the civilians against whom charges of other criminal offences such as killing and looting have been brought would be tried by a speedy trial tribunal under the Penal Code.
The government came up with the decision in line with the observations made by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in its reply to a presidential reference on the issue.
In its reply to the reference, the Appellate Division categorically said the BDR rebellion cases could not be tried under the Army Act and not even by issuing a notification under Section 5 of the act applying it to the Bangladesh Rifles with a retrospective effect.
Following the decision, the government also filed two cases—one under the Penal Code against 824 people, including 23 civilians, on charge of murder, arson, robbery and other criminal offences and another under the Explosives Act against 808 on charge of illegally taking up arms.
A Dhaka court began the proceedings on January 5 with taking into cognisance the criminal offences committed during the rebellion.
Dhaka metropolitan sessions judge Mohammad Jahurul Haque, however, on February 3 granted a prosecution petition for further investigation into the case and ordered the CID to submit the investigation report by March 3.
The first trial of soldiers on mutiny charges began in Rangamati on November 24, 2009 under the Bangladesh Rifles Order 1972 and following unit level investigations the authorities accused 6,052 soldiers, including 4,098 in Dhaka, of taking part in mutiny.
In the verdicts, different courts so far acquitted twenty-two soldiers.
The fist verdict was pronounced by the Special Court-2, chaired by the then BDR director general Mainul Islam on February 3, 2010 at the 25 Border Guard Bangladesh at Panchagarh where 29 soldiers were convicted.
The first verdict at the BGB headquarters in Dhaka was pronounced by the Special Court-9 on February 1 in which all the 111 accused of the BDR Record Wing were convicted.
Special Courts also sentenced 50 soldiers of the 20 Battalion in Thakurgaon, 57 of the 19 Battalion in Feni, 56 of the 7 Battalion of Nildumur in Khulna, 9 of the 12 Battalion of Rajnagar in Rangamati, 14 of the 8 Battalion in Sunamganj, 35 of the 10 Battalion of Bolipara in Chittagong Hill Tracts, 23 of the 31 Battalion in Lalmonirhat, 20 of the 3 Battalion in Jaipurhat, 39 of the 21 Battalion in Sylhet, 59 of the 38 Battalion of Akhalia in Sylhet, 29 of the 1 Battalion of Sarail in Comilla, 35 of the 15 Battalion of Nikhangchhari in CHT, 46 of the 29 Battalion in Khagrachhari, 23 of the 40 Battalion of Phulbari in Dinajpur, 25 of the 43 Battalion in Naogaon, 61 of the Sylhet sector headquarter, 15 of the Kushtia sector headquarter, 40 of 32 Battalion of Mirpur in Kushtia, 17 of the 35 Battalion of Chuadanga, 44 of the 37 Battalion in Rajshahi, 21 of the 18 Battalion in Rangamati, 74 of the 9 Battalion of Marissa in Khagrachhari, 11 of the 46 Battalion of Patnitala in Naogaon, 51 of the 42 Battalion of Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar and 71 soldiers of the 17 Battalion in Cox’s Bazar.
Courtesy of New Age
