SC defers hearing of SQ Chy, Mojaheed review petitions to Nov 17

Salauddin-Quader-Chowdhury-and-Ali-Ahsan-Mohammad-Mojaheed

The Appellate Division has deferred hearing the review petitions of war crimes death row inmates Jamaat-e-Islami leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Salauddin Quader Chowdhury to November 17.
A four-member bench led by Chief Justice SK Sinha on Monday deferred the hearing as the counsel of both Salauddin and Mojaheed, Khandker Mahbub Hossain, sought time for preparation of the hearing.
The bench also rejected Salauddin’s petition for deposition by nine witnesses, including five Pakistani nationals, during the hearing of review of his death sentence.
On October 1, the International Crimes Tribunal-1 issued the warrants for the execution of death sentences of the two war crimes convicts.
Death-row war crimes convicts Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury filed review petitions on October 14 with the Supreme Court against its verdicts that upheld their death penalties for their crimes against humanity during the Liberation War.
The Supreme Court on September 30 released the full verdicts awarding death penalty to Mojaheed and SQ Chowdhury clearing the way for the execution of the judgment.
Earlier, the court on June 16 had upheld the death sentence awarded by International Crimes Tribunal-2 to Mojaheed for killing intellectuals during the war in 1971.
The International Crimes Tribunal-2 on July 17, 2013 had awarded Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed death penalty for committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in collaboration with the Pakistan occupation forces, after finding the Al Badr boss guilty of five, out of seven, charges.
On August 11, 2013, condemned convict Mojaheed filed an appeal with the Appellate Division against his capital punishment awarded by the ICT-2.
Mojaheed was arrested on charge of hurting religious sentiment on June 29, 2010 and later he was shown arrested in a case filed for committing crimes against humanity on August 2 in that year.
On July 29, the SC had upheld the death sentence awarded by ICT-1 to SQ Chowdhury for committing crimes against humanity, including rape and mass killing, during the Liberation War, 43 years ago.
On October 1, 2013, the then International Crimes Tribunal-1 had found the BNP leader guilty of crimes against humanity during the War of Liberation and condemned him to death.
On October 29 of the same year, Salauddin Quader Chowdhury had filed an appeal with the Appellate Division against the ICT verdict.
Source: New Age