War crimes convict Mir Quasem Ali petitions for review of death sentence

Former al-Badr leader and senior Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Quasem Ali has sought a review of the Supreme Court’s verdict, which ordered death sentence for 1971 war crimes.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 19 June 2016, 08:29 AM
Updated : 19 June 2016, 08:32 AM

His counsels filed a petition with the Supreme Court on Sunday.

“The petition seeks acquittal from the charges in which he has been convicted,” son Mir Ahmed bin Quasem told bdnews24.com.

The Jamaat leader, has been lodged in the Kashimpur Central jail since his arrest in 2012.

He was found guilty by the International Crimes Tribunal and was awarded death penalty in 2014.

He challenged the verdict but in March this year, the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence.

The full verdict was released on Jun 6, after which the Tribunal issued his death warrant.

Once the matter of review is resolved and if the death sentence is upheld, the war crimes convict will have the opportunity to seek a presidential clemency.

If the Jamaat leader is denied pardon, the government then will order the jail authorities to hang him.

Mir Quasem was the Al-Badr’s third most important functionary after Jamaat-e-Islami chief Motiur Rahman Nizami and Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid.

Bangladesh has executed both Nizami and Mujahid for 1971 war crimes.

Mir Quasem, a terror during 1971 in Chittagong, has proved to be a shrewd businessman and politician.

The 63-year old media tycoon pumped billions into the Jamaat since the mid-1980s to put it on a firm financial footing in Bangladesh.