Jamaat calls strike for Monday

Jamaat-e-Islami has called a dawn-to-dusk shutdown across Bangladesh for Monday to protest against a death warrant issued for its Assistant Secretary General Abdul Quader Molla for war crimes.

News Deskbdnews24.com
Published : 8 Dec 2013, 02:04 PM
Updated : 8 Dec 2013, 04:37 PM

The shutdown will be enforced amid the third of the countrywide blockade by the Opposition that has seen Bangladesh coming to halt.

The Opposition party's acting Secretary General Shafiqur Rahman issued a media statement to this end on Sunday evening.

The International Crimes Tribunal had on Feb 5 sentenced Molla to life for killings, rapes and looting, protesting which the party had called shutdown across the country.

Perceived to be too lenient a penalty, the Prosecution moved the Supreme Court against the appeal.

The court on Oct 17 revised the life term to death sentence. Protesting it, Jamaat had called a 48-hour shutdown across the country.

A three-day countrywide blockade, called by BNP-led 18-Party alliance, is already on. Monday would be the last day of the three-day blockade.

The Jamaat alleges the government filed false cases against Molla just to kill him on the pretext of the crimes against humanity. Trial process of the cases was politically motivated, it claims.

Prosecutors have been claiming that there is no scope for reviewing the apex court’s verdict as the crimes against humanity are being tried under special law.

Yet, the Jamaat claims that Molla has the right to have his verdict reviewed as per Section 105 of the Constitution.

According to the media statement, Molla asked his family to file a petition for a review of the verdict.

The lawyers have appealed to the prison authorities, seeking the audience with him, it added.

Prosecutors have, however, been pointing out Section 47 (3) of the Constitution, saying it states that basic rights do not apply to any person convicted for war crime charges.

The Jamaat says the shutdown is to protest against the government's 'plots for political killings'

It has called on its supporters to enforce the shutdown ‘peacefully’.

Despite making such a call, one or more than one person had reportedly been killed in clashes with police or ruling party activists during shutdowns called by the party.

The Jamaat had earlier called shutdowns and then perpetrated violence in protest against the International Crimes Tribunal’s verdict on its leaders sentencing them to life or death.

The party had on 11 Nov threatened to burn down 56000 square miles once any move was made to execute the death verdict of Molla.