A tribunal in Dhaka Monday handed former Jamaat-e-Islami chief Ghulam Azam 90-year jail for his role in the murder and genocide of the independence-seeking people of the land who were fighting occupation Pakistani army in 1971.
All the five charges, which include involvement in murder and torture of unarmed people, conspiracy, planning, incitement and complicity in genocide, and crimes against humanity, were proved, the International Crimes Tribunal-1 pronounced.
Sitting in the dock of the jam-packed courtroom, the 91-year-old Jamaat leader looked sad.
The anxious wait for the judgement on the high profile Jamaat leader, who was arrested on January 11 last year, came to an end around 11:02am Monday.
Justice Anwarul Haq, a judge on the panel, started reading out from the 243-page verdict.
The court read out a 75-page excerpt.
Ghulam Azam was taken to the International Crime Tribunal building from the prison cell of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University a few minutes before 10:00am.
Sitting on a wheel-chair, the accused was produced at the tribunal dock at 10:42am.
The tribunal started its proceeding at 10:46am with its chairman, Justice ATM Fazle Kabir, reading out a short description of the case.
While fixing the date for delivering the verdict on Sunday, the tribunal chief turned down a plea by the chief defence counsel, Abdur Razzaq, to consider Azam’s age and not to deliver the verdict in his presence.
The court wrapped up the closing arguments of the case on April 17.
The prosecution on January 5, 2012, brought 62 specific charges against Azam.
On May 13, 2012, the tribunal indicted him on five charges of crimes against humanity based on 61 incidents of murder and torture of unarmed people; and conspiracy, planning, incitement and complicity to commit genocide and crimes against humanity during the 1971 war.
According to the indictment order, at the time of the country’s Liberation War in 1971, all leaders and workers of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing, Islami Chhatra Sangha, opposed the liberation movement under Ghulam Azam’s leadership.
“At that time Jamaat-e-Islami became an auxiliary force under the Pakistan army and since he was the ameer (chief) of Jamaat-e-Islami, he not only controlled the organisational framework of Islami Chhatra Sangha but played the pivotal role in forming the Shanti Committee, Razakars, Al-Badr, Al-Shams etc,” the order read.
“He was also elected uncontested a member of the National Assembly from Tangail district through a sham election held in 1971,” the order read.
He went to Pakistan on November 22, 1971.
After the liberation of Bangladesh on December 16, 1971, he formed a committee named “Purbo Pakistan Punoruddhar Committee” (East Pakistan Restoration Committee) as part of his campaign to restore East Pakistan in the first part of 1972.
Between July 1, 2012 and February 14 this year, 16 prosecution witnesses, including seven “seizure-list” witnesses and the investigation officer, testified against Ghulam Azam while only his son testified for him.
The prosecution and the defence completed their arguments between February 17 and April 17 this year.
Source: The Daily Star
