The International Crimes Tribunal-1 has scheduled the announcement of the verdict in the case involving former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and two of her close associates for November 17. Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, set the date for the case related to crimes against humanity during the July uprising last year, under stringent security measures.
Former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who later turned approver, are also implicated in the crimes committed during the July Uprising last year. The trial proceedings concluded on October 23 after Chief Prosecutor Tajul Islam lodged the complaint with the tribunal on June 1, outlining five specific charges.
Security measures have been increased in and around the ICT premises as the verdict date approaches. Police, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and Armed Police Battalion (APBn) personnel have been stationed in the court vicinity, with army patrols also visible.
The charges against the three accused in the case include accusations of murder, attempted murder, torture, and other inhumane acts. They are charged with abetting, inciting, facilitating, and failing to prevent these crimes against civilians during the July incident. The prosecution alleges that the defendants were involved in severe and systematic attacks on unarmed student masses following a press briefing by Hasina on July 14.
Hasina is specifically accused of ordering the extermination of student protesters using helicopters, drones, and lethal weapons, with the former home minister and former IGP allegedly executing this directive. The charges also relate to the murder of a protesting student near Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur and the shooting and killing of protesters in Dhaka’s Chankharpul and Ashulia.
The prosecution asserts that the defendants knowingly ordered, incited, abetted, facilitated, and conspired to commit crimes against humanity, including torture and murder, during these incidents. The verdict announcement on November 17 will mark a significant development in this ongoing case.