The Supreme Court (SC) has taken a special initiative for quick disposal of sensational killing cases. The top court has already sent some death references in such cases to the High Court (HC) for speedy disposal. The blogger Rajib killing case, Rajon and Rakib killing case, police officer Mahfuzur and wife Swapna Rahman killing case, tailor Biswajit Das and Ramna Batamul bomb blast cases were among the cases currently under trial in the HC, sources said.
“If such initiative is taken and fast-track trials are held, there will be no case backlogs in future,” law minister Anisul Huq said.
On December 9, 2012, Biswajit Das was hacked to death by some Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists of Jagannath University, near Bahadur Shah Park in the old city, during the BNP’s countrywide road blockade programme.
On December 18, 2013, a speedy trial tribunal of Dhaka sentenced eight BCL activists to death and 13 others to life imprisonment for killing Biswajit. Soon after receiving the death reference of the case, the HC prepared the paper book of the death reference as per the Chief Justice’s directive.
On February 19, an HC division bench prepared the paper book of the death reference containing details of the case, trial proceedings, statements, evidence, verdicts and other documents. Now, the HC bench of Justice Md Ruhul Quddus and Justice Bhishmadev Chakrabortty will dispose of the death reference as per the Chief Justice’s directive.
According to sources, the Ramna Batamul bombing attack case is now pending before the HC. Ten people were killed in a bomb explosion during cultural troupe Chhayanaut’s programme in the capital’s Ramna Batamul on the morning of April 14, 2001. Harkat-ul-Jihad (HuJi) top leader Mufti Abdul Hannan and 13 other militants were accused in the case.
On June 23, 2014, a Dhaka court sentenced eight of the accused to death and gave life imprisonment to six others.
Following the SC’s special initiative, an HC bench, comprising Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice JBM Hassan, will dispose of the case as the chief law officer of the state is likely to place his final arguments before the bench by this month. After that, the HC will deliver its verdict, the sources added. As per the Chief Justice’s directive, an HC

bench, comprising Justice Jahangir Hossain and Justice Md Jahangir Hossain, has made significant progress in the disposal of death references in cases of minor Sheikh Md Samiul Alam Rajon in Sylhet, child Rakib in Khulna, blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider in Dhaka and police inspector Mahfuzur Rahman and his wife Swapna Rahman in Dhaka.
The HC has already completed hearing on the death reference in the Rajib killing case and kept the matter as "court awaiting verdict" (CAV).
The hearing on death reference filed in the Rajon and Rakib killing cases is in the final stages. The death reference in the Narayanganj seven-murder case was also sent to the HC. The paper book of the death reference is now under process, as the Chief Justice had asked the officials concerned to prepare the paper book of the case quickly. Talking to The Independent, Anisul Huq said the government was happy over quick disposal of the cases. In response to a query, the minister said the government would monitor the trial proceedings in all other sensational murder cases so that those trial proceedings could be wrapped up quickly. Applauding the Chief Justice for taking the initiative, criminal law expert Khurshid Alam Khan said: “If there is quick punishment, heinous crimes will be reduced in future.”