Deposed regime's 10 ministers are among 20 heavyweights being put to trial at the first go on allegations of committing crimes against humanity and genocide during the July-August uprising in Bangladesh.
Those shown arrested by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) also include two advisers to ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The two are Salman F Rahman and Toufiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury.
The tribunal also issued arrest warrants against another 17 persons, including former DMP commissioner Habibur Rahman, in another case on similar charges.
The tribunal asked the relevant bodies of the government to produce them in the court on November 18 and 20 respectively.
Immediate-past law minister Anisul Huq comes first among the shown-arrested former ministers. The rest are Abdur Razzaque, Faruk Khan, Dr Dipu Moni, Shajahan Khan, Golam Dastagir Gazi, Kamal Ahmed Majumdar, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Rashed Khan Menon and Hasanul Haq Inu.
On the maiden trial list also are former Appellate Division Judge of the Supreme Court Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury and former Home Secretary Jahangir Alam.
Former Inspector-General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun, former Director-General of the National Telecommunications Monitoring Centre (NTMC) Major-General Ziaul Ahsan, ex-Additional SP of Dhaka Abdullahhil Kafi, former Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Jatrabari Police Station Abul Hasan, Mazharul Islam and Arafat Hossain are also among the accused.
The three-member tribunal, led by its chairman Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mazumdar, passed the orders Sunday after hearing on three petitions filed by the prosecution team. The two other members of the tribunal are Justice Md Shofiul Alam Mahmud and Judge M Mohitul Hoque Anam Chowdhury.
During the hearings, Chief Prosecutor Tajul Islam told the court that earlier it had issued arrest warrant against 46 accused and some of them are already arrested in different cases. "So it is necessary to have shown them arrested in the tribunal cases."
He also prayed to the court to show arrested six others who have already been detained in other cases.
The tribunal allowed the petitions showing them arrested and fixed November 18 this year to produce 14 accused, including former ministers and advisers, before it and the remaining ones on November 20.
Meanwhile, the tribunal also issued arrest warrants against 17 persons, including the former DMP commissioner, in connection with another case instituted on similar charges.
The court ordered the authorities concerned to arrest the 17 cops and produce them before the tribunal on November 20.
On October 17, the ICT issued a warrant for arrest of runaway Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on charges of committing crimes against humanity, including disappearances, murders and genocide, during her tenures in the past one and a half decades.
It also passed same order against 45 others, including Awami League general secretary and former Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader.
The tribunal also asked the law enforcers to arrest and produce the accused before it by November 18 this year.
At least 753 people, as per Health Ministry account, were killed and thousands injured during the student-mass uprising that overthrew the Sheikh Hasina government.
Over 60 complaints of crimes against humanity and genocide have been filed against Hasina and her party leaders and associates with the ICT investigation agency and the prosecution team so far.
The Hasina-led AL government formed the International Crimes Tribunal in March 2010 to try the perpetrators of crimes against humanity committed during the Liberation War in 1971.
[email protected]
