The Supreme Court on Tuesday deferred till November 12 the hearing of the appeals against the International Crimes Tribunal-1 verdict sentencing Jamaat leader Delawar Hossain Sayedee to death for the crimes he committed against the humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.
The five-member Appellate Division bench led by Chief Justice M Muzammel Hossain passed the deferment order. The bench also fixed November 12 for next hearing on the appeal.
Earlier, defense lawyer SM Shahjahan read out deposition and cross-examination of the 10th prosecution witness in the war crimes case against Sayedee before the court during the hearing.
It’s worth mentioning that the apex court goes on 19 days vacation on October 11 for the forthcoming Eid-ul-Azha and Durga Puja, two biggest festivals of both Muslim and Hindu communities.
Earlier, both the convict and the government lodged appeals with the Appellate Division of the SC against the verdict on March 28 and 29 respectively.
The tribunal found Jamaat-e-Islami nayeb-e-ameer Sayedee guilty of murder, abduction, confinement, torture, rape, persecution, and abetment of torture, looting, forceful religious conversions and setting homes ablaze in rural areas of the southern district of Pirojpur during the war.
He was sentenced to death in two of the charges even though he was found “guilty beyond reasonable doubt” in eight counts of the charges.
In their appeals, the government sought Sayedee’s capital punishment on the other six charges where he was found guilty while the defence sought his acquittal.
Source: UNB Connect