Bangladesh's national leaders honoured on Jail Killing Day

Bangladesh is honouring the memory of four national leaders murdered behind the bars four decades ago.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina placed wreaths before the mural of her father, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Dhanmondi at 7am Thursday.

She then observed few minutes of silence.

Bangabandhu’s closest associates - former Vice President Syed Nazrul Islam, former Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmed, Captain (Retd) Mansur Ali and former Home Minister AHM Quamruzzaman - were killed on Nov 3, 1975 while interned at the Dhaka Central jail.

Their murder followed the assassination of Bangabandhu and most of his family members in August 15 that year.

Hasina first paid tribute as head of government before leading the new members of the Awami League’s central working committee to pay tribute as the chief of the ruling party.

Leaders of Awami League’s affiliate organisations along with various social and cultural organisations also paid respects. 

At 6am, black flags and the Awami League’s flag were raised at half mast at Bangabandhu Bhaban, the Awami League offices as well as in other party offices across the country.

Tributes have been paid at the graves of Syed Nazrul Islam, Tajuddin Ahmed and Mansur Ali at Dhaka's Banani and the grave of AHM Quamruzzaman in Rajshahi at 8am.

Sheikh Hasina will lead a memorial meeting at the Krishibid Institute at 3pm.

The four leaders were arrested and held in prison after the coup that resulted in Bangabandhu's assassination.

The four were murdered during the series of coups and counter-coups that followed. 

The military conspirators responsible for the assassination of Bangabandhu on Aug 15, 1975 are also believed to have perpetrated the jail killings.

The murder trials were put on hold for 21 years. Awami League revitalised the case when it came to power in 1996.

The chargesheet accusing 23 people was submitted on Oct 15, 1998, 23 years after the case was filed.

On Oct 20, 2004, during the tenure of the BNP-Jamaat coalition government, a High Court verdict sentenced 15 of the 20 accused of the jail killings.

Three fugitives, Risalder Mosleh Uddin, Dafader Sharafat Ali and Abul Hossain Mridha, were sentenced to death in the case and 12 others were awarded life imprisonment.

Subsequently the High Court upheld the death sentence of just one.

Members of the deceased’s families called the verdict ‘farcical and politically motivated’ and insisted that justice had not been done.

The Awami League government filed a leave to appeal against the High Court in 2009 after it came to power in the 2008 elections.

On Jan 11, 2011 an Appellate Bench led by Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque granted the government’s appeal.

The Appellate Division then upheld the death sentences against Dafader Marfat Ali Shah and LD Dafader Abul Hashem Mridha on Apr 30, 2013, despite the acquittal by the High Court.