BNP on Monday night (November 17) said it believes justice has been served through the International Crimes Tribunal’s verdict sentencing deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death for crimes against humanity committed during the July-August Uprising.
“After a long judicial process, following international standards, the International Crimes Tribunal has delivered its verdict against Awami fascist Sheikh Hasina and her two accomplices. This verdict has ensured justice,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
He shared the party’s formal reaction at a press briefing after a meeting of the BNP Standing Committee at the party chairperson’s Gulshan office.
Fakhrul said people at home and abroad had long called for accountability for the crimes committed under the previous regime.
“The people of Bangladesh and the international community have been waiting for justice for the brutal acts of murder, torture and genocide carried out by the fallen dictator and her associates,” he said.
Fakhrul said the tribunal handed down the maximum punishment under the law to Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, while former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who cooperated with the court, received a reduced sentence of five years’ imprisonment.
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He said the BNP is firmly committed to the rule of law and urged the country’s people to stay alert in this regard.
Fakhrul said their party also demanded fair trials for all other accused persons in other cases.
“With this verdict, we believe the souls of those who were victims of enforced disappearances, killings and extrajudicial executions over the past sixteen years — and the thousands who were killed during the 2024 student uprising — will find some peace. The anger of their families will ease to some extent,” the BNP leader said.
The BNP Standing Committee meeting, chaired virtually by Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman from London, began at 8:30pm and continued for two hours.
BNP Standing Committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Salahuddin Ahmed were also present at the press briefing.
Earlier in the day, the tribunal convicted Sheikh Hasina and two others in a case related to crimes against humanity committed during last year’s July–August uprising, in which more than 1,000 people were killed.
The ICT-1 sentenced Sheikh Hasina to death, while former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Kamal also received the death penalty. Former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who gave testimony as a state witness, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment.
The court further ordered the confiscation of the properties of Sheikh Hasina and Asaduzzaman Kamal in favour of the state.
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