“Verdict today in the case against Habib and 8 police officers”

In a case over crimes against humanity related to the July uprising of 2024, concerning the killing of six people at Chankharpul in the capital, a verdict will be delivered today against eight accused, including former DMP Commissioner Habibur Rahman.

On Monday (26 January), the verdict will be announced by a three-member judicial panel of International Crimes Tribunal-1, headed by its chairman Justice Md. Golam Mortuza Mozumder. The other two members are Justice Md. Shafiul Alam Mahmud and retired District and Sessions Judge Md. Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury.

The verdict in this case was originally scheduled for 20 January. However, as preparations were not completed, the tribunal fixed today’s date.

Although this is the first case of the reconstituted tribunal, it will be the second in terms of verdicts delivered. The incident occurred on 5 August 2024. Those who were martyred in the incident are Shahriar Khan Anas, Sheikh Junaid, Yakub, Rakib Hawladar, Ismam-ul Haque, and Manik Mia. In this connection, the investigation agency submitted a 90-page report to the prosecution on 21 April last year. After scrutiny, the prosecution filed formal charges before Tribunal-1 on 25 May. On the same day, the tribunal took cognizance of the charges and issued arrest warrants against the accused.

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Following this, four of the eight accused who were arrested were produced before the tribunal. They are former Shahbagh Police Station Inspector (Operations) Md. Arshad Hossain, Constable Md. Sujan Mia, Md. Imaz Hossain Emon, and Md. Nasirul Islam.

Those who are absconding are former DMP Commissioner Habibur Rahman, former DMP Joint Commissioner Sudip Kumar Chakraborty, former Additional Deputy Commissioner of Ramna Zone Shah Alam Md. Akhtarul Islam, and former Assistant Commissioner of Ramna Zone Mohammad Imrul.

In the presence of the arrested accused, Tribunal-1 framed charges on 14 July last year after hearing arguments from both the prosecution and the defense. This formally ordered the trial of the eight accused. Subsequently, witness examination began on 11 August. The first witness to testify was Shahriar Khan Palash, father of martyred Anas. A total of 26 witnesses were examined over 23 working days, concluding on 10 December. Closing arguments began on 15 December. After hearing arguments and counterarguments from both sides, the tribunal set 24 December as the date for the verdict. However, this was later deferred from 20 January to today.

In this crimes against humanity case, the prosecution submitted a seizure list including 19 videos, 11 newspaper reports, two audio recordings, books and 11 reports, and six death certificates.

Meanwhile, during arguments, the state sought the maximum punishment for all eight accused. The defense, however, claimed the prosecution’s allegations were incorrect and sought acquittal for the accused. The fate of the eight police officers will be determined by the tribunal’s verdict.