The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), Bangladesh on Monday decided to hold the trial of war crimes suspects Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan alias Nayeb Ali who are currently staying abroad, in absentia for allegedly committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971. The three-member second tribunal led by its chairman Justice Obaidul Hassan, took the decision to start the trial of Mueen-Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman in absentia as they did not appear before it even after publication of
newspaper advertisements in this regard.
According to probe report of the War Crimes Investigation Agency, Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin acted as the “operation-in-charge” of Al-Badr while Ashrafuzzaman Khan as the “chief executor” during the Liberation War in 1971.
On May 12, the tribunal ordered the publication of the notice in two well-circulated national dailies, one in Bengali and another in English. The notice was published on The Janakantha and The Daily Star on May 14 and on May 15 respectively.
Mueen and Ashraf, the then leaders of Islami Chhatra Sangha, student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, are facing 16 charges of crimes against humanity, including killing, abduction, confinement and torture of 18 intellectuals, including nine university teachers, six journalists and three physicians, in December 10-16, 1971.
The tribunal order also said that the tribunal did not see any immediate prospect for arresting them.
The tribunal directed the chief prosecutor to provide state defence counsels with copies of the formal charge, list of witnesses, statements of witnesses and related documents, to which the defence has the right to access, by June 4.
The tribunal also fixed June 4 for further hearing in this regard.
On April 25, the prosecution submitted formal charges against the duo and the tribunal on May 2 took cognizance of the charges and issued warrants for their arrest.
The war crimes investigation agency, quoting intelligence sources, recently said Mueen had been living in London while Ashraf in the United States.
Armed elements, led by the duo, abducted intellectuals, took them to Mohammadpur Physical Training Centre premises, tortured and killed them and dumped the bodies at Rayerbazar and Mirpur killing grounds in December 10-16, 1971, the prosecution alleged.
Meanwhile, cross examination of Aynal Haque, the 9th prosecution witness in the case against the incumbent Jamaat chief Matiur Rahman Nizami, was completed on Monday.
The ICT-1, headed by Justice ATM Fazle Kabir, adjourned the hearing till June 2.
The witness, Aynul Haque, a retired school teacher submitted his deposition yesterday saying he had seen Nizami visiting his school on May 10, 1971, for forming Peace Committee in his locality. “I saw ‘Dalal Asad’ with Nizami on that day. I knew Asad very well as he used to work as an accomplice of the Pakistani force,” Haque said in his deposition.
The witness said Pakistani army carried out genocide in villages Demra, Rupshi, and Bausgari on May 14, 1971, and killed 300 to 350 innocent civilians on that day.
“Later, I came to know that Dalal Asad helped the army on that fateful day in raiding those villages,” Haque added.
-With The Independent input
