The Rajshahi Speedy Trial Tribunal on Tuesday sentenced two members of Jamaatul Mujahedeen Bangladesh to death and three operatives of the banned extremist outfit to imprisonment for life term for murdering Rajshahi University English department professor AFM Rezaul Karim Siddiquee in 2016.
The tribunal judge, Shirin Kabita Akter, pronounced the verdict in presence of four of the five, including one of the two sentenced to death, in the dock.
JMB operatives Maskawat Hasan Sakib alias Masud alias Abdullah of Satianpara village at Shibganj upazila in Bogra and Shariful Islam alias Khalid alias Rahat of Sripur village at Bagmara upazila in Rajshahi, were sentenced to death.
Shariful, a dropped out student of English at the university who masterminded the murder, was tried in his absence as he went into hiding after the murder.
JMB members Rahmat Ullah alias Shahin of Miyapara village at Kishoreganj upazila in Nilphamari, Md Abdus Sattar of Narikel Baria under Boalia police station in Rajshahi city and his son Md Ripon Ali were jailed for life term.
Rahmat was a final year student of crop science
department of Rajshahi University and Maskawat was a polytechnic institute student.
Each of the convicted was fined Tk 20,000.
The judge observed in the verdict that the convicted JMB operatives murdered the progressive teacher in the name of establishing Islamic Khilafat.
Public prosecutor Entazul Hauqe Babu said that Professor Rezaul Karim Siddiquee set up a music school at his village at Bagmara upazila and Shariful considered it to be against their ‘so-called Khilafat movement’.
Shariful on several occasions threatened the professor of dire consequences for being progressive and finally planned to kill him in the name of establishing Islamic Khilafat, he added.
He contacted with Rahmat Ullah, who joined the outfit after getting admitted at the university, and Maskawat Hasan, the north region head of the outfit, and deployed fellow extremists Khairul Islam Payal alias Badhan, Nazrul Islam alias Bike Hasan and Tareque Hasan Milu alias Osman, and Maskawat to kill the professor, said the prosecutor.
They planned the murder at the house of Sattar Ali. Sattar and his son were members of the outfit.
Police recovered laptops containing the plan of the killing and other documents from Sattar’s house, added the prosecutor.
Khairul, Nazrul, Tareque and Sakib actively took part in the killing while Shariful and four others planned and abetted them, he said.
All the four detained convicts made statements before the court confessing to the murder, the public prosecutor added.
Professor AFM Rezaul Karim Siddiquee, 58, was hacked to death when he was walking to catch a university bus at Shalbagan, near his house, in Rajshahi city in the morning on April 23, 2016.
His son Riasat Emtiaj Sourav filed the case with Boalia police station on the day against unnamed people. The case was transferred to the Detective Branch of police for investigation.
After the murder, international extremist group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the murder.
On November 6, 2016, the police submitted the charge sheet in the case to Rajshahi Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court against eight JMB suspects.
Among the accused, Khairul Islam Payal was killed during a raid on Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka and Nazrul Islam and Tareque Hasan Milu were killed in ‘gunfights’ in Rajshahi and Bogra.
Family members, colleagues and students of the slain professor expressed their satisfaction over the verdict and demanded an expeditious execution of the verdict.
Slain professor’s daughter Rizwana Hasin Shotovi told New Age that they were satisfied with the verdict and demanded immediate arrest and execution of mastermind Shariful.
‘I am happy [with the verdict]. But, I would have been happier if all the five were sentenced to death,’ Riasat Imtiaz said.
Slain professor’s colleague Jahurul Islam said that they were fairly satisfied with the verdict.
‘The main culprit is still on the run. We will emphasize that the law enforcers arrest him…but, above all, we are satisfied, and demand immediate execution of the verdict,’ he said.
Defence counsel Mizanul Islam and Moloy Kumar Ghosh said that their clients would challenge the verdict in the High Court after getting the copy of complete verdict.
The tribunal began the trial on September 12, 2017 and ended the trial on April 11. It examined 27 prosecution witnesses.
Source: New Age.
