A Tribunal here on Wednesday summoned Rafida Ahmed Bonya on December 30 to testify in the murder case of her husband, founder of Mukto Mona blog Avijit Roy.

Judge of Dhaka Anti-Terrorism Tribunal Md Mujibur Rahman directed Bonya and five other witnesses to appear before the court to testify.

Earlier on March 25, a Dhaka court transferred the Bangladesh-born US citizen Avijit’s murder case to the Anti-Terrorism Tribunal for trial proceedings.

Before that on March 14, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) pressed charges against six people, including sacked Major Syed Mohammad Ziaul Haque, a suspected coordinator of banned militant outfit Ansar-Al-Islam in the case.

The five other accused are Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon, Abu Siddiq Sohel alias Sakib alias Sajid alias Shahab, Akram Hossain alias Abir, Md Arafat Rahman and Shafiur Rahman Farabi.

Of them, Zia and Akram have been on the run.

Avijit, son of recently deceased physicist Ajoy Roy, was hacked to death, but Banya escaped with serious injuries after unidentified assailants attacked them with meat cleavers near TSC on the Dhaka University campus on the evening of February 26, 2015, as they were returning home from the Amor Ekushey Boi Mela.

Avijit’s late father filed a murder case with Shahbagh Police Station the very next day.

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court is set to hear on Thursday BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s bail petition in Zia Charitable Trust Graft Case.

On December 5, the apex court deferred the hearing until December 12 and asked the medical board formed to treat Khaleda Zia to submit reports on her health condition before it within Thursday.

A six-member Appellate Division bench, led by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, had passed the order following a petition seeking time.

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam had filed the petition seeking time for submitting the health reports.

On November 28, the six-member Appellate Division bench deferred the hearing on the bail petition in the case until December 5.

It had also asked the medical board formed to treat the BNP chairperson to submit a health report before the court on December 5.

Khaleda had moved the apex court on November 14 challenging a High Court order that had turned down her bail petition in the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.

The High Court on September 11 rejected Khaleda’s bail petition in the case. Her bail petitions were turned down twice earlier on July 31 and September 3.

On August 8, 2011, the Anti-Corruption Commission filed the Zia Charitable Trust case with Tejgaon police against four people, including Khaleda. They were accused of abusing power in raising funds for the trust from unknown sources.

A special court jailed the BNP chief and three others for seven years in the corruption case on October 29 last year. Khaleda later moved the High Court.

The former prime minister has been in prison since February 8 last year after she was sentenced to jail for five years in a separate corruption case.

Khaleda Zia is currently being treated at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.

A court here on Wednesday granted bail to Faria Mahbub Piasha, wife of prime suspect in The Raintree Dhaka hotel rape case Shafat Ahmed, in a case filed reportedly for issuing death threat and demanding Tk 5 crore as extortion.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Tofazzal Hossain passed the order after Piasha surrendered before the court and prayed for bail.   

Dildar Ahmed Selim, co-owner of Apan Jewellers and father of Shafat, filed the case.

According to the case statement, Piasha married his son Shafat on January 1, 2015. Later, they came to know that Piasha was a drug addict and Shafat divorced her on March 8, 2017.

Police arrested Shafat over the rape of two female private university students at The Raintree Dhaka in the city's Banani area on March 28 last year.

He got bail on November 29 last year and returned home.

After Shafat’s bail, Piasha along with her friends came to her father-in-law’s house and misbehaved with Shafat’s younger brother and mother.

She also gave death threat to them and demanded Tk 5 crore, said the case statement.

The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on Wednesday sentenced war criminal Tipu Sultan to death for crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971.

The three-member tribunal, led by Justice Md Shahinur Islam, pronounced the verdict.

Abdus Sattar alias Tipu Razakar alias Tipu Sultan is a resident of Boalia upazila in Rajshahi.

Advocate Mokhlesur Rahman Badal was the prosecutor while Advocate Gazi MH Tamim represented the war criminal.

Badal said the prosecution is satisfied with the verdict but Tamim said they would challenge the court’s decision.

Earlier on Tuesday, the ICT set Wednesday to pronounce the verdict. On October 17, 2018, the ICT kept the verdict pending.

On August 8 the same year, the ICT pressed charges against Tipu Sultan. He was accused of killing 10 people, torturing 11 others and looting valuables in Talaimari area of the upazila during the Liberation War.

The investigation team also found his involvement with ‘Islami Chhatra Songho’ and ‘Islami Chhatra Shibir’, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, said chief of the ICT investigation team Abdul Hannan Khan.

On January 1, 2018, Motihar police arrested Tipu Sultan in an Explosive Substance Act case. He was later shown arrested in the war crimes case.

The High Court on Tuesday ordered Md Awlad Hossain who has been receiving fake arrest warrants to appear before court or the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to present him before court on January 15. 

The court also ordered the CID to find the culprits behind sending the fake arrest warrants.

The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Md Mustafizur Rahman passed the order with a rule.

Besides, the High Court has directed the Sherpur court to grant Awlad Hossain bail after examining the warrant. He has also been ordered to be released from Sherpur jail on bail.

Senior lawyer Zainul Abedin and Emadul Haque Bashir stood for the petitioner while deputy attorney general Amit Talukdar represented the state.

Confirming the court order, Zainul Abedin said Awlad Hossain will come by himself within January 15 if he is released but he needs to be presented at court if he is in jail.

Son of Nur Mohammad hailing from Taksur village of Mirzanagar area in Ashulia, Md Awlad Hossain was employed as a programme officer in the agriculture department of Gonoshasthaya Kendra. He has been shown arrested due to a warrant issued from Cox’s Bazaar.

Currently he is in jail in a case filed in Sherpur after warrants were issued against him at Cox’s Bazaar, Rajshahi and Bagerhat.

His lawyer claims that these arrest warrants were forged. That is why Awlad Hossain’s wife filed a writ so he can be presented at the High Court to ensure he was not detained illegally.

According to Emadul Haque Bashir, Awlad was first arrested from Ashulia by police on October 30. His bail prayer was made when he was produced before a Dhaka court on that day. The court ordered his documents to be sent to Cox’s Bazaar court. When the documents reached Cox’s Bazaar, Awlad’s bail application was made.

In this context, the Cox’s Bazaar court said there was no accused called Awlad in that case and the arrest warrant was not issued from that court. It ordered his release.

When the release order reached Dhaka jail, the jail authorities said there was a case filed against the accused at Rajshahi and he will be sent there. When a bail prayer was made at the Rajshahi court, the court said there was no accused called Awlad in that case and it did not issue the arrest warrant in his name.

When it was told to release him, the jail authorities informed that there was a case filed in his name at Bagerhat. Consequently, Awlad Hossain was sent there.