Ganajagaran Mancha rejects verdict

The Ganajagaran Mancha has expressed dissatisfaction over the verdict of the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in former Jamaat-e-Islami chief Ghulam Azam’s war crimes trial and marched at the capital Dhaka’s Shahbagh in a show of protest.

The Mancha has also threatened a day-and-night sit-in.

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday found Azam guilty of all five charges – incitement, conspiracy, planning, abetment and failure to prevent murder – and sentenced him to 90 years in prison.

Protests followed the verdict at Shahbagh. The Mancha activists, who had gathered in front of the National Museum since Sunday night, blocked the Shahbagh intersection.

“This verdict has frustrated everyone concerned with the spirit of the Liberation War,” the platform’s spokesperson Imran H Sarker said.

“The Ganajagaran Mancha has rejected this verdict. We will stay at the Prajanma Chattar until the war criminals get maximum penalty,” he said.

Another Mancha spokesperson, Maruf Rasul, echoed Sarker. “We don’t support this verdict. We’ve gathered at Shahbagh to protest against it.

Thousands of youths gathered in Shahbagh on February 5 protesting life imprisonment to Jamaat leader Quader Molla terming the sentence ‘lenient’. The movement later spread across the country.

Despite calling off continuous sit-in protest on February 21, activists of the Mancha have been thronging Shahbagh on the eve of a verdict on the war crimes.

Bombs explode in Shahbagh

Meanwhile, a handmade bomb exploded at Shahbagh during the Ganajagaran Mancha protest.

The bomb exploded at around 3:40pm close to the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and National Museum. Another live bomb was recovered from the spot, Shahbagh Police Station OC Sirajul Islam said.

Earlier, the Mancha supporters took out processions in the nearby areas. Back at Shahbagh, the Mancha leaders announced a 24-hour sit-in there.