Dhaka, Oct 26 (bdnews24.com)--Death convict Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan was not involved with the assassination of president 'Bangabandhu' Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, his counsel contended on Monday.
Abdur Rezzak Khan told the Supreme Court in the arguments hearing that his client had gone to Dhaka radio station on Aug 15, 1975 to discharge duty but he was not linked to the killing events at Bangabandhu's house.
The five-judge Appellate Division bench headed by Justice Mohammed Tafazzal Islam ended the 16th day's hearing at 1:35pm which had begun at 9:45am.
Rezzak would continue with his deliberations on Tuesday.
Advocate Khan Saifur Rahman concluded his arguments on behalf of death convicts Syed Faruk Rahman and Mohiuddin Ahmed (artillery) earlier in the day.
Rezzak told reporters after hearing that Shahriar Rashid was reinstated to his job as lieutenant colonel in the army on the orders of the chief of general staff (Brigadier General Khaled Mosharraf) on Aug 15.
He was seen at the radio station following the order. He went to Bangabhaban later. But it was not brought during testifying that he had gone to the house on Dhanmondi road no. 32 house of president Sheikh Mujib, the lawyer said.
"Shahriar Rashid went to radio station to discharge his duty. The event of house number 32 (Dhanmondi) cannot be related with that, because that occurrence finished at around 5am.
"Bangabandhu was killed along with his family at that time. [Shahriar Rashid] did not have any role in that killing. No witness has mentioned his role during testimony," Rezzak added.
Replying to a query, he said if going to radio station was any offence, it will not be included in the murder charge.
He said the court asked him why Shahriar Rashid had gone to radio station.
"I said in my reply that he had gone there following the order of the then chief of general staff. He did not go to House number 32."
Rezzak said it has appeared from the testimonies that of the two High Court judges (who had given the verdict on Dec 14, 2000), one said the 14th witness of the case Dafadar Abdul Jabbar Mridha had seen Shahriar Rashid coming from Balurghat (the place where the assassination plot was allegedly planned).
The other judge said Jabbar and 24th witness Habilder Aminur Rahman had seen Shahriar Rashid coming to the radio station from Balurghat .
There is a difference of opinion between the two High Court judges on the issue. One judge ignored the testimony of the 24th witness.
"I have presented this to the court," Rezzak said.
He said 61 people had testified in this case in the trial court. But the court in its observation in the verdict did not include any part of the cross-examination of a witness.
The common intention of killing was not proved in the testimony. It was brought through the Balurghat event.
Twenty people had testified about the Balughat event. Two of them had testified against Shariar Rashid. They did not work under him, neither were they in his regiment.
They had only seen Shahriar Rashid on the night of the occurrence and recognised him on the dock 21 years later.
Rezzak said of the two testimonies, one High Court accepted only one's testimony, other judge did not accept any.
Earlier in the day, citing examples of the High Court cases in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Khan Saifur said at the hearing that Faruk's death sentence could be commuted to life imprisonment on ground that he was a freedom fighter.
He said Mohiuddin (artillery) was not included in the First Investigation Report in the case. He was framed in the case as parts of efforts to implicate a person by the name of Mohiuddin in the case.
Referring to a judgement on a case in the Indian High Court, he said the death sentence could be reduced in case of split verdict of the High Court.
On the fifteenth day, Khan Saifur said Faruk "deserves" to have his death penalty commuted to a life sentence.
Faruk has been on death row for 14 long years and his death sentence "deserved" to be reduced to a life term, he said.
Khan Saifur also said it has not been proved that Faruk was present at the scene at the time of assassination of Mujib and his family.
The freshly formed bench headed by Justice Mohammed Tafazzal Islam began hearing the appeals on Mujib murder case on Oct 5.
A day before, chief justice M M Ruhul Amin constituted the bench with justices Mohammed Abdul Aziz, Bijoy Kumar Das, Mohammed Mozammel Hossain and Surendra Kumar Sinha being the other members.
None was allowed to file a case immediately after the assassination of the independence architect Sheikh Mujib on Aug 15, 1975.
The government of Khandker Mustaque Ahmed that was installed after the bloody military coup passed an ordinance in November that year indemnifying the perpetrators and closing the door on the possibility of a trial.
The Awami League government revoked the indemnity ordinance in 1996 and cleared the way for the trial. Then, Sheikh Mujib's personal assistant Muhitul Islam filed a case on Oct 2, 1996 with Dhanmondi Police Station against 24 persons.
On Nov 8, 1998, Dhaka sessions judge Golam Rasul awarded death sentences to 15 of the 20 accused. Four of the convicts—Major (retd) Bazlul Huda, Lt Col (dismissed) Syed Faruk Rahman, Lt Col (retd) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan and Lt Col (retd) Mohiuddin Ahmed—appealed to the High Court against the verdict.
On Dec 14, 2000, the High Court gave a split verdict in the case—Justice Md Ruhul Amin upheld death sentences of 10 of the convicts but Justice A B M Khairul Haque retained death sentences of all the 15.
On April 30, 2001 Justice Mohammad Fazlul Karim of a third High Court bench upheld death sentences of 12 and acquitted three.
Of the 12 death convicts, four appealed against their sentence in the Appellate Division in the same year.
Another death convict, retired Lt Col (lancer) A K M Mohiuddin, made an appeal from jail after he was deported from the United States on June 18 last year.
Of those having received death sentence, former Lt Col Abdur Rashid, Lt Col Shariful Haq Dalim, Lt Col Noor, Risalder Moslemuddin, Lt Col Rashed Chowdhury and Capt Majed are absconding.
The detained death convicts are dismissed Lt Col Syed Faruk Rahman, retired Lt Col Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, retired Lt Col Mohiuddin Ahmed (artillery), retired Major Bazlul Huda and retired Lt Col A K M Mohiuddin (lancer).
Absconding convict Aziz Pasha died in exile in Zimbabwe.
bdnews24.com/at/su/ec/wz/bd/1403h.
