Runaway premier Sheikh Hasina's cabinet members had to stand in the dock of a special tribunal she created for trial of others on same charges of crimes they are now facing.
A total of 13 accused, including members of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's cabinet, her advisers and former apex-court judge, were produced Monday before the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Dhaka that was created by the Awami League regime.
An investigation into charges of committing crimes against humanity, including indiscriminate shootings, killings, detention and torture of students and genocide during the July-August mass movement, is under way against them.
The list of accused includes former law minister Anisul Huq, former advisers to the former prime minister Salman F Rahman and Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, Workers Party president Rashed Khan Menon, JSD president Hasanul Haq Inu, former civil aviation and tourism minister Muhammad Faruk Khan, former social welfare minister Dipu Moni, former textile and jute minister Golam Dastagir Gazi, ex-state minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak, former state minister for industries Kamal Ahmed Majumder and former Member of Parliament Shahjahan Khan.
Also in the dock are former Appellate Division judge AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury and former Home Secretary Jahangir Alam.
After considering a petition filed by the prosecution team, a three-member bench of the tribunal headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder ordered sending them to jail.
In the order the tribunal said, "Allegations of committing offences of killing, genocide and crimes against humanity and so on during the July-August mass movement by active participation, abatement and instigating have been raised against them… Since investigation against the accused is going on and not concluded yet, the accused who have already been arrested would be kept in detention until further order."
The tribunal at the same time ordered placing investigation report against the accused on December 17.
The other two members of the bench are Justice Md Shofiul Alam Mahmood and former District and Sessions Judge Md Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury.
In a separate order, the tribunal asked the investigators to complete their probe into allegations brought against Sheikh Hasina in one month and fixed December 17 for further proceedings on it. The tribunal also ordered the prosecution to submit a report on the execution of the order issuing an arrest warrant against Sheikh Hasina on the day.
Earlier on October 17, the tribunal issued warrant for arrest of Sheikh Hasina and 45 others on charges of committing crimes against humanity like enforced disappearances, murders and genocide during her tenures in the past one and a half decades. The tribunal asked the law enforcers to run in the runways and produce them before the court by November 18.
Later on October 27, the tribunal showed arrested 20 persons who had already been in jail in other cases. A total of 13 out of 20 accused were produced in the tribunal on Monday.
During the hearing, Chief Prosecutor of the ICT Advocate Muhammad Tajul Islam said ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had superior command responsibility over numerous killings, genocides, crimes against humanity committed in the country in the last sixteen and a half years.
"We all are talking about the killings, genocides, crimes against humanity committed during the July-August student-mass uprising, but the regime of Sheikh Hasina committed numerous such crimes in the last sixteen and a half years and she had superior command responsibility over all those crimes," the chief prosecutor said while taking part in the hearing at the tribunal.
Advocate Muhammad Tajul Islam further said Sheikh Hasina regime "in a systematic, widespread and targeted way killed thousands of people" during the time.
"They were involved in BDR carnage, enforced disappearances and raised Aynaghor to persecute and torture and eventually get rid of their political opponents. Around taka two trillion was laundered abroad, raised Begum Para in foreign countries like Canada. As part of their evil attempt of divide-and-rule policy to keep their wicked regime going, they took recourse to the word 'Razakar' and used to tag this term to whoever dared to oppose them," he added.
At this stage, the court asked the Chief Prosecutor to know what happened to Sheikh Hasina's arrest warrant.
"The authorities concerned could not execute the arrest warrant against Sheikh Hasina as she managed to flee the country. We, in the meantime, pleaded for issuing the International Criminal Police Organization, INTERPOL, red notice against her. We have learned she is in India and our government will request the country to send her back as per the extradition agreement. The process is underway," Tajul added.
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