Former Jamaat-e-Islami chief Ghulam Azam on Monday appealed to the Appellate Division against his conviction for the crimes he had committed against humanity during the Liberation War and the 90-year imprisonment handed down by an international crimes tribunal.
On July 15, the ICT-1 delivered the verdict against Ghulam Azam for conspiracies, planning, incitement and complicity in the genocide and crimes against humanity and murder of four civilians in 1971, including police sub-inspector Siru Miah of Brahmanbaria.
Ghulam Azam appealed for scrapping his conviction on 109 grounds and submitted 8,886 pages of documents in support of his appeal.
In the appeal Azam said that his statements and speeches in 1971 condemning the atrocities of the Pakistani army in 1971 against the unarmed civilians in the then East Pakistan were not reported because of the censorship and regulations which were in force at that time.
‘The findings of the ICT-1 regarding the appellant’s role in 1971 based solely on the selected news reports of 1971, is manifestly perverse
and liable to be set aside,’ he said.
The appellant said the news reports published in 1971 were so subject to the censorship regulations that the investigation officer failed to ascertain their authenticity.
There was no credible evidence on record, either oral or documentary to establish the charges of conspiracies, planning, incitement and complicity in crimes against humanity in 1971, he said.
The appellant said that the tribunal had failed to properly assess the crimes committed against humanity but was influenced by public demand.
The ICT committed an error by not allowing defence witnesses – Sir Jack Deverell and professor William Schabes – for Ghulam Azam, said the appellant.
He said that the depositions of prosecution witnesses contained so many inconsistencies and contradictions that they could not be relied upon without corroboration.
The evidence adduced by the prosecution witnesses did not prove any of the charges against Azam, said the appeal.
As per the Appellate Division rule, the Supreme Court is required to notify the government and the appellant to submit to the court in 30 days the summarised arguments of both the parties so that the appeal could be made ready for hearing.
After submission of summarised statement, the appeal will come up on the list of the Appellate Division for fixing a date for hearing.
Ghulam Azam is the fourth of the six war crimes convicts to file appeal against his sentence and conviction.
Of the five other convicts, former Jamaat leader Abul Kalam Azad, widely known as Bachchu Razakar in Faridpur, Jamaat-nayeb-e-amir Delwar Hossain Sayedee, assistant secretary general Muhammad Kamaruzzaman and secretary general Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed were sentenced to death on January 21, February 28, May 9 and July 17 respectively, while Jamaat assistant secretary general Abdul Quader Molla was jailed for life on February 5 and former Jamaat chief Ghulam Azam was jailed for 90 years on July 15 on charge of crimes they had committed against humanity during the war of independence in 1971.
Three convicts Quader Molla, Sayedee and Kamaruzzaman earlier filed their appeals and Mojaheed is scheduled to file appeal on Wednesday while Bachchu Razakar lost his right to appeal as a fugitive convict.
On July 23, the Appellate Division completed the hearing in two appeals against the verdict against Quader Molla and reserved delivering its judgement for a later date. It is scheduled to hear the appeal against Sayedee on September 17 when Kamaruzzaman’s counsel is scheduled to submit summarised argument of his appeal.
The ICT-1 found Ghulam Azam guilty on all 61 counts under five charges.
Ghulam Azam was indicted on May 13, 2012 on 61 counts.
-With New Age input
