SC upholds Kamaruzzaman\\\'s death penalty

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Monday upheld the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-2’s judgment that had condemned Jamaat-e-Islami leader M Kamaruzzaman to death for war crimes. A four-member Appellate Division bench headed by Justice SK Sinha delivered the verdict by majority decision, dismissing Kamaruzzaman’s appeal. The other members of the Appellate Division were Justice MA Wahhab Miah, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique and Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury. The judgment was delivered at 9:10am in a jam-packed courtroom amid tight security in and around the apex court. On May 9 last year, the ICT-2 handed down capital punishment to Kamaruzzaman for his crimes against humanity committed during Bangladesh’s independence struggles in 1971. On June 6 last year, Kamaruzzaman filed the appeal with the SC challenging the ICT-2 verdict. On June 4, 2012, the tribunal charged detained M Kamaruzzaman with 7 crimes against humanity committed during the war. Eighteen prosecution witnesses, including the investigation officer of the case, testified against Kamaruzzaman. Five people also testified for the accused, according to a news agency.