Published : 09 Apr 2015, 05:47 PM
Updated : 23 Apr 2022, 12:34 PM
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Alam said he thought it was ‘logical’ to allow war criminal Mohammad Kamaruzzaman only the time needed ‘to write a mercy petition’.
The issue of carrying out the death verdict for the Jamaat-e-Islami leader emerged last Monday, when the top appeals court rejected his plea to review his sentence.
The attorney general had said then that the tribunal laws did not stipulate a specific timeframe to resolve the issue of presidential clemency.
However, the verdict rejecting a similar plea by war criminal and Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Molla stated that the convict should be given ‘reasonable time’ to file a mercy petition, Alam had said on Monday.
Kamaruzzaman’s verdict that dismissed the review plea was read out to him on Wednesday.
Asked whether he would file a mercy petition, the war criminal said he wanted to discuss it with his counsels.
A five-strong team of lawyers headed by Shishir Monir met him on Thursday.
“He would take ‘reasonable’ time … He has taken time to analyse, time to think as to when he will inform jail authorities,” Monir told reporters after emerging from a meeting with their client.
Later on Thursday, referring to Monir’s statement, reporters asked the attorney general what would be a ‘reasonable time’.
“Reasonable time means the time to write a mercy petition.
“If he says he will need seven days, then that wouldn’t be reasonable,” replied Alam.
The attorney general had earlier said that the time frame of 7 to 21 days to complete the formality of mercy petition according to the jail code will not be applicable in war crimes trials.
He said the same on Thursday.
“The tribunal law is not like the other laws...since this special law stipulates that it will happen on the government’s orders. It also says irrespective of whatever stated in other laws, provisions stated in this law will get priority.”
Meanwhile, State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal has said Kamaruzzaman has to take a call on filing a mercy petition by Thursday.
“If he does file a mercy petition then it will be forwarded to the president. Otherwise, the verdict will be carried out as soon as possible,” he told reporters at his office.
