Review unlikely to change Salauddin Quader’s death sentence: Law minister

Law Minister Anisul Huq has welcomed the Supreme Court verdict upholding Salauddin Quader Chowdhury’s death sentence and hoped it would remain unaltered even after a review.

“A review generally looks for procedural flaws. One in a hundred review pleas yields flaws,” he told journalists at his office after the Appellate Division gave its verdict on Wednesday.

“A review is unlikely to change the main sentence since the Appellate Division has not found any loopholes in the tribunal’s verdict,” he said.

“I am sure it will not change even if a review petition is filed.”

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 had sentenced Chowdhury to death on Oct 1, 2013, for murdering Kundeshwari Oushadhalaya owner Nutan Chandra Singha, genocide of Hindus at Sultanpur and Unsattar Parha, and the abduction and murder of a Hathazari Awami League leader and his son.

The Appellate Division confirmed the tribunal verdict after a year and nine months.

Chowdhury’s lawyer Khandker Mahbub Hossain said they will seek a review after getting a copy of the full verdict.

The law minister said steps would be taken to carry out the sentence after the review.

Satisfied with the verdict, the minister said, “The guilty remained arrogant even after 1971. This verdict proves them and their rehabilitators wrong.”

Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu said the verdict proved no one was beyond the law.

Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan urged the authorities at a Dhaka rally to immediately execute the sentence.