Charges framed against 75 BDR jawans

BDR mutiny trial in Rangamati
Feb 15: The BDR Special Court-4 yesterday framed charges against 75 alleged mutineers of 9 Rifles Battalion of Marishya zone under Baghaichhari upazila, adjourning the proceedings till Tuesday 1pm.
All of the 75 mutineers were produced before the special court yesterday from Rangamati jail and they were also sent back to jail after the court adjourned.
The three-member special court yesterday sat at 9am at the Mechanical Transport Shed at BDR sectors headquarter in the town.
At the beginning of proceedings, the court ordered the prosecutors to submit complains and read out it in presence of the alleged mutineers.
Lt Col Shamimur Rahman, battalion commander of Marishya zone, who is also a prosecutor, described his complains and submitted related documents and papers in the court against the accused BDR members.
The prosecutor told the court that there are 25 witnesses, three of them from civil and they will provide depositions in the mutiny case.
As first witness, naik subedar Rezaur Rahman, who is also complainant of the case, yesterday gave deposition of about half of the 25 witnesses in the court.
As his complains were long stories of the mutineers, the court adjourned the proceedings.
As per direction of the court, the alleged jawans claimed one by one in the court that they were not guilty. They all were sufferers of the situation on February 25-26, 2009, they claimed, adding that they were also experiencing inhuman sufferings in jail though they were innocence.
They also submitted documents and related papers in the court as evidences in favour of them.
All the accused BDR members prayed to the court to appoint more lawyers for them. However, the court did not permit instantly but said that it would think over it.
In the hearing held earlier on December 30 last year, the accused jawans also claimed themselves innocent.
A BDR member named lance naik Hedayetul Islam was admitted to BDR sector’s medical centre as he fell sick when he was giving his statement in the court.
The three-member court, headed by DG of BDR Maj Gen Md Moinul Islam, includes Lt Col Md Abdur Rouf and Major Golam Mostafa Al-Mamun.
Deputy attorney general Md Sorahwardy, on behalf of attorney general, aided the court.
M Hossain Kazal and Md Mohiuddin Dewan were present as senior public prosecutotrs on behalf of the state.
Advocate SM Abdur Rouf, Kazi Bashir Ahmed and Major Enamul Karim aided the mutineers in the court.
The mutiny in Rangamati took place at three of the sector’s five battalions. The battalions are: 12 Rifles Battalion at Rajanagar in Longudu, 9 Rifles Battalion at Marishya in Baghaichhari and 18 Rifles Battalion at Chhotohorina in Barkal upazila.
 
Courtesy of The Independent