Jamaat calls Bangladesh-wide shutdown for Sayedee’s release

The Jamaat-e-Islami has called a Bangladesh-wide shutdown for Thursday and Sunday to mount pressure for release of one of their top leader and war crimes convict Delwar Hossain Sayedee from jail.

The 48-hour strike will start from 6am Thursday and continue until 6am Friday. It will resume at 6am Sunday and end on 6am Monday, said a statement by the party'sacting Chief Mokbul Ahmad on Wednesday.

The party also said activists and leaders will hold prayers on Friday for its leader and agitation will continue on Saturday.

"Sayedee has been repeatedly a victim of this government's oppression. He has been made a victim today by being deprived of justice from the highest court of the country in a false case by the government," the statement quoted Ahmad saying.

The International Crimes Tribunal had ordered death for Sayedee on Feb 28 last year after finding him guilty of crimes like murder, rape, loot and forcible religious conversion.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court reduced his sentence to ‘imprisonment until death’.

Jamaat supporters had unleashed large-scale violence last year when the war crimes gave its verdict.

In the days following that verdict, 70 people including policemen lost their lives in the violence. At least 200 others were injured and attacks were carried out on Hindus.