Frustration grows as trial lingers

The trial in the August 21 grenade attack case continues to linger at the trial court. Nobody knows how much the family members of the victims will have to wait for justice. After the verdict is delivered by the trial court, there are many legal steps in the High Court and Supreme Court. The grenade attack on an Awami League rally took place on August 21, 2004. Even after the verdict on the possible review petition, those convicted may delay its implementation by seeking presidential clemency.
Many have expressed frustration saying that in their lifetime, they might not see the punishment of the attackers and masterminds of the grenade attack. Surprisingly, ministers, lawmakers, politicians, along with prosecutors, become very active when the grenade attack anniversary comes. But as soon as it is over, dealing with the case also becomes usual, like any other case. Even law enforcers have failed to trace the 19 charge-sheeted accused in the last 12 years. Many say it is an "unpardonable negligence" on the part of law enforcement agencies.
Dismissing all allegations, public prosecutor Advocate Mosharraf Hossain Kazol, who is dealing with the case, said the verdict could be delivered within two or three months. Replying to a question, he said the time would be needed to complete cross-examination of two investigation officers. Claiming that the trial is in the final stages, Mosharraf said deposition of 224 prosecution witnesses, out of 491, was almost complete. Prior to observing the grenade attack’s 11th anniversary a year ago, Mosharraf had told The Independent that the backlog of several other sensational cases, including the 10-truck arms smuggling case in Chittagong, the bomb blast case during Pahela Baishakh celebrations at Ramna Batamul in 2001 that killed 10 people, the recovery of 76 kg of explosives from the venue of a PM’s rally at Kotalipara upazila of Gopalganj district and the grenade attack on the British high commissioner, Anwar Choudhury, in Sylhet on May 21, 2004 have contributed to the delay in disposal of the August 21 grenade attack case. Many of the accused in the August 21 grenade attack case were also charge-sheeted in other sensational cases. As per the law, all accused, except those absconding, must be present in the court during the testimony of witnesses, explained Mosharraf.
Blaming the other cases and time petitions filed by defence counsel, the senior lawyer said: “We have not submitted a single time petition.” He told this correspondent that 19 charge-sheeted accused have been shown as fugitives, eight are on bail, and the remaining are in different jails.
Of the accused, former minister and Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general and top war criminal, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, was executed in a case of crimes against humanity committed during the War of Liberation in 1971. Former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar, ex-deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu and Harkatul Jihad Bangladeshi (HuJIB) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan are in prison.
Former inspectors general of police (IGPs) Ashraful Huda, Shahudul Haque and Khoda Baksh Chowdhury, and three former investigation officers of cases, ex-SP Ruhul Amin of CID, former ASPs of CID Atiqur Rahman, and Abdur Rashid have obtained bail.
According to intelligence sources, among the 19 fugitive accused, BNP senior vice-chairman and former prime minister and BNP chairman Khaleda Zia’s son, Tarique Rahman, stays in the United Kingdom, while former lawmaker Shah Mofazzal Hossain Kaikobad is in Thailand.
Intelligence officials claimed that owner of Hanif Enterprise, Mohammad Hanif, is in India, Maj. Gen. (retd) ATM Amin is in the US, Lt. Col. (retd) Saiful Islam Joarder is in Canada, Babu, alias Ratul Babu, is in India, Anisul Morsalin and his brother Mohibul Muttakin are in an Indian jail and Maulana Tajul Islam is in South Africa.
However, the officials did not know the whereabouts of Harris Chowdhury, political advisor of the then prime minister, Khaleda Zia, Maulana Tajuddin and Babu, who are brothers of the detained former deputy minister of the BNP government, Abdus Salam Pintu, who is also a charge-sheeted accused in the August 21 grenade attack case, militant leaders Shafikur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hai, Maulana Abu Bakar, Iqbal, Khalilur Rahman, Jahangir Alam, alias Badar, and Maulana Liton, alias Zobair, alias Delwar, former deputy commissioner (east) and deputy commissioner (south) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Md Obaidur Rahman and Khan Syed Hasan.
The officials only hinted that most of them are hiding in Pakistan to avoid punishment.
A total of 52 people were accused in separate charge sheets in two cases—one for murder and another under the Explosives Act.
The grenade attack on the AL rally killed 24 leaders and workers of the party, including Ivy Rahman, wife of the late president Zillur Rahman, and injured 300 others, including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was then the leader of the Opposition. Sheikh Hasina and other front-ranking leaders escaped narrowly.
The attack was allegedly carried out in collaboration with the banned Islamist outfit, Harkatul Jihad-al-Islami, influential leaders of the BNP and Jamaat and some officials in the home ministry, police, Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), National Security Intelligence (NSI) and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
During the last caretaker government’s tenure, the first two charge-sheets in the August 21 cases—one for murder and another under the Explosives Act—were placed before the court on July 11, 2008, accusing 22 people, including former deputy minister of the BNP-Jamaat alliance government, Abdus Salam Pintu, and 21 HuJi leaders and workers. On July 3, 2012, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) submitted two separate supplementary charge-sheets in the cases against 30 people after a fresh investigation into the matter. With the addition of 30, the number of accused in the cases rose to 52. During the BNP-Jamaat regime, investigators were trying to divert the probe to save the real culprits. Media reports on the cooked-up story of Joj Mia were brought to public attention by the then CID officials to derail the investigation. The attempt to frustrate the case by then BNP-led regime prompted the subsequent interim government to order a fresh investigation into the case.

 

Frustration grows as trial lingers

The trial in the August 21 grenade attack case continues to linger at the trial court. Nobody knows how much the family members of the victims will have to wait for justice. After the verdict is delivered by the trial court, there are many legal steps in the High Court and Supreme Court. The grenade attack on an Awami League rally took place on August 21, 2004. Even after the verdict on the possible review petition, those convicted may delay its implementation by seeking presidential clemency. Many have expressed frustration saying that in their lifetime, they might not see the punishment of the attackers and masterminds of the grenade attack. Surprisingly, ministers, lawmakers, politicians, along with prosecutors, become very active when the grenade attack anniversary comes. But as soon as it is over, dealing with the case also becomes usual, like any other case. Even law enforcers have failed to trace the 19 charge-sheeted accused in the last 12 years. Many say it is an unpardonable negligence on the part of law enforcement agencies. Dismissing all allegations, public prosecutor Advocate Mosharraf Hossain Kazol, who is dealing with the case, said the verdict could be delivered within two or three months. Replying to a question, he said the time would be needed to complete cross-examination of two investigation officers. Claiming that the trial is in the final stages, Mosharraf said deposition of 224 prosecution witnesses, out of 491, was almost complete. Prior to observing the grenade attacks 11th anniversary a year ago, Mosharraf had told The Independent that the backlog of several other sensational cases, including the 10-truck arms smuggling case in Chittagong, the bomb blast case during Pahela Baishakh celebrations at Ramna Batamul in 2001 that killed 10 people, the recovery of 76 kg of explosives from the venue of a PMs rally at Kotalipara upazila of Gopalganj district and the grenade attack on the British high commissioner, Anwar Choudhury, in Sylhet on May 21, 2004 have contributed to the delay in disposal of the August 21 grenade attack case. Many of the accused in the August 21 grenade attack case were also charge-sheeted in other sensational cases. As per the law, all accused, except those absconding, must be present in the court during the testimony of witnesses, explained Mosharraf. Blaming the other cases and time petitions filed by defence counsel, the senior lawyer said: We have not submitted a single time petition. He told this correspondent that 19 charge-sheeted accused have been shown as fugitives, eight are on bail, and the remaining are in different jails. Of the accused, former minister and Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general and top war criminal, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, was executed in a case of crimes against humanity committed during the War of Liberation in 1971. Former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar, ex-deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu and Harkatul Jihad Bangladeshi (HuJIB) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan are in prison. Former inspectors general of police (IGPs) Ashraful Huda, Shahudul Haque and Khoda Baksh Chowdhury, and three former investigation officers of cases, ex-SP Ruhul Amin of CID, former ASPs of CID Atiqur Rahman, and Abdur Rashid have obtained bail. According to intelligence sources, among the 19 fugitive accused, BNP senior vice-chairman and former prime minister and BNP chairman Khaleda Zias son, Tarique Rahman, stays in the United Kingdom, while former lawmaker Shah Mofazzal Hossain Kaikobad is in Thailand. Intelligence officials claimed that owner of Hanif Enterprise, Mohammad Hanif, is in India, Maj. Gen. (retd) ATM Amin is in the US, Lt. Col. (retd) Saiful Islam Joarder is in Canada, Babu, alias Ratul Babu, is in India, Anisul Morsalin and his brother Mohibul Muttakin are in an Indian jail and Maulana Tajul Islam is in South Africa. However, the officials did not know the whereabouts of Harris Chowdhury, political advisor of the then prime minister, Khaleda Zia, Maulana Tajuddin and Babu, who are brothers of the detained former deputy minister of the BNP government, Abdus Salam Pintu, who is also a charge-sheeted accused in the August 21 grenade attack case, militant leaders Shafikur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hai, Maulana Abu Bakar, Iqbal, Khalilur Rahman, Jahangir Alam, alias Badar, and Maulana Liton, alias Zobair, alias Delwar, former deputy commissioner (east) and deputy commissioner (south) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Md Obaidur Rahman and Khan Syed Hasan. The officials only hinted that most of them are hiding in Pakistan to avoid punishment. A total of 52 people were accused in separate charge sheets in two casesone for murder and another under the Explosives Act. The grenade attack on the AL rally killed 24 leaders and workers of the party, including Ivy Rahman, wife of the late president Zillur Rahman, and injured 300 others, including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was then the leader of the Opposition. Sheikh Hasina and other front-ranking leaders escaped narrowly. The attack was allegedly carried out in collaboration with the banned Islamist outfit, Harkatul Jihad-al-Islami, influential leaders of the BNP and Jamaat and some officials in the home ministry, police, Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), National Security Intelligence (NSI) and the Prime Ministers Office (PMO). During the last caretaker governments tenure, the first two charge-sheets in the August 21 casesone for murder and another under the Explosives Actwere placed before the court on July 11, 2008, accusing 22 people, including former deputy minister of the BNP-Jamaat alliance government, Abdus Salam Pintu, and 21 HuJi leaders and workers. On July 3, 2012, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) submitted two separate supplementary charge-sheets in the cases against 30 people after a fresh investigation into the matter. With the addition of 30, the number of accused in the cases rose to 52. During the BNP-Jamaat regime, investigators were trying to divert the probe to save the real culprits. Media reports on the cooked-up story of Joj Mia were brought to public attention by the then CID officials to derail the investigation. The attempt to frustrate the case by then BNP-led regime prompted the subsequent interim government to order a fresh investigation into the case.