Dhaka, Sep 8: Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Tuesday warned the chief prosecutor of the country’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) against making public comments on matters pending judicial review, a day after he said deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina had no scope to appeal against her death sentence.
“The apex court has warned the chief prosecutor (Aminul Islam) for speaking openly about a pending matter in the media, and he has been asked to refrain from commenting on it,” a court official said.
Islam acknowledged the warning, saying, “I will not make any comments in advance from now on.”
The warning came during the hearing of an appeal filed by death row convict Abul Kalam Azad, also known as Bachchu Razakar, against his conviction by the ICT-BD in absentia.
A four-member bench of the Appellate Division adjourned the hearing for four weeks after a brief hearing, with Islam appearing for the state.
The chief prosecutor’s remarks on Monday that neither Hasina nor Azad could challenge their ICT-BD verdicts had prompted the court’s intervention.
“Those sentenced to death by the court, including Sheikh Hasina, who have not appealed within 30 days of the verdict, will no longer have the opportunity to do so,” Islam had told reporters at his office.
“The law applies equally to everyone, whether it is fugitive Maulana Abul Kalam Azad or former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been sentenced to death,” he said.
Azad was sentenced to death by the special tribunal in 2013, in the first verdict delivered by the ICT-BD. He had fled the country to evade justice but returned to Bangladesh in January this year.
Following his return, the home ministry, under the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus, granted a “temporary stay” on his execution. After he subsequently surrendered to the ICT-BD, the tribunal allowed him to remain free for the time being instead of sending him to jail.
His lawyers in July challenged the ICT-BD’s death sentence before the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division and also submitted an explanation for the delay in filing the appeal beyond the stipulated 30-day period.
The ICT-BD was originally established to prosecute those accused of collaborating with Pakistani forces during Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War.
Under the interim administration led by Yunus, the tribunal prosecuted and subsequently sentenced Hasina to death in absentia for human rights abuses.
Hasina’s government was toppled following the student-led uprising on August 5, 2024, after which she fled to India, where she has remained since. (PTI)
