War crimes investigators finalise report against first Pakistan Army soldier

War crimes investigators in Bangladesh have finalised charges against a former member of the Pakistani Army.

Muhammad Shahidullah, a Bengali captain during the Liberation War, will be the first Pakistani Army officer to face charges at the International Crimes Tribunal.

The 75-year-old has been linked to three incidents of crimes against humanity including murder, abduction, torture, arson and looting during the 1971 war, said the tribunal's investigators at a press conference in Dhanmondi on Tuesday.

Shahidullah, from Amirabad village at Comilla's Daudkanti, is accused of committing war crimes in his own locality.

He allegedly joined the invading Pakistani forces at Dhaka Cantonment after the war broke out. He set up a camp at Daudkandi Sadar after getting transferred from Dhaka to Comilla Cantonment.   

Abdul Hannan Khan, chief coordinator for the investigation agency, said the Bangladesh Army does not have any record on Shahidullah because he did not join it after the war.

But the accused is still referred to as 'the captain' in his locality.
 

Charge 1: Eight to 10 members of the Pakistani Army including Md Shahidullah captured homeopathy practitioner Habibur Rahman during a raid on the Daudkanti bazaar on Jun 7, 1971. He was tortured at their camp before being killed near the Gomti River. The body was then dumped into the river.  

Charge 2: Shahidullah and 40 to 50 other personnel attacked Chengakandi and Golaperchar villages at Uttor Union at Daudkanti on Jun 16, 1971. They captured around 20 pro-liberation activists, looted five homes and set them on fire.

Six among the 20 captives were released. The remaining 14 were lined up at Golaperchar Tek which lies on the way to the Daudkanti army camp. Shahidullah dragged one among them to the side of Gomti River and shot him dead. The rest were brought to the camp, tortured and released on the condition that they provide information on freedom fighters.    

Charge 3: Shahidullah attacked Daudkandi bazaar with other soldiers on Jul 21, 1971. There they tortured a driver named Kalamia and shot him dead behind the Chandina Hospital. His body was dumped in a nearby canal.   
 

The investigation Shahidullah began on Oct 11, 2015, said Hannan.  

"We have been investigating for one and half years. We will submit our report to the prosecution today."

The International Crimes Tribunal granted a prosecution plea by issuing an arrest warrant against Shahidullah on Aug 2 last year. He was produced in court and sent to prison the next day.

Several other Bengali officers of the Pakistan Army are being investigated for war crimes, said Sanaul Haque, senior coordinator for the probe agency.

"We will not release their identities for the sake of investigation. But we hope to inform you one step at a time."

There are 19 witnesses in the case, said its investigation officer Altafur Rahman. The seizure list has three more witnesses, he added.