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The International Crimes Tribunal has taken cognisance of formal charges against seven leaders of the banned Awami League, including presidium member Amir Hossain Amu, over alleged crimes against humanity committed during the July-August mass uprising.
The tribunal also ordered six accused currently in jail to be produced before it on November 22 and issued an arrest warrant for fugitive Awami League Organising Secretary Mirza Azam.
A three-member panel of International Crimes Tribunal-2, headed by Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, passed the order on Thursday (November 5).
The other members of the panel are Judges Md Manjurul Bashid and Noor Mohammad Shahriar Kabir. Prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim represented the prosecution during the hearing.
The other accused are Awami League Organising Secretary Mirza Azam, former Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, former Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Lt Col (retd) Faruk Khan, former Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaq, former minister Dipu Moni and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s energy adviser Taufiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury.
During the hearing, prosecutor Tamim presented the allegations against the seven accused and sought their formal acceptance. He also sought production warrants for the six detained accused and an arrest warrant for Mirza Azam. The tribunal granted the applications after hearing the prosecution.
At a subsequent press briefing, Tamim alleged that then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had taken political and state-level decisions to suppress the July uprising.
He said plans had been implemented to use lethal weapons against protesters, impose curfews, shut down internet services and control the media.
According to the prosecutor, the prosecution submitted recorded conversations, documents, documentary evidence and witness statements to support the allegations.
He also said evidence, including a United Nations report, had been submitted to support allegations that state security forces and intelligence agencies were used to carry out killings during the crackdown. Tamim referred to an alleged instruction by Sheikh Hasina to “kill them and hide the bodies”, which he said was mentioned in the UN report.
Regarding the individual roles of the accused, Tamim said the case included information about the recovery of Tk5 crore in cash, packed in sacks, from Amir Hossain Amu’s residence after August 5.
He alleged that Faruk Khan attended a security committee meeting on August 4, where a decision was taken to shoot and kill protesters at the entry points to Dhaka the following day.
Tamim further alleged that Dipu Moni attended a meeting on imposing a curfew and was involved in planning the crackdown.
He claimed that Shajahan Khan, through conversations with Sheikh Hasina, helped coordinate instructions for police, Awami League activists and workers to take to the streets against protesters.
The allegations also include arson attacks on various establishments during the uprising. According to the prosecution, there was a plan to set fire to buildings and blame the protesters for the incidents.
Tamim said recorded conversations involving Sheikh Hasina, Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader and former Information Minister Hasan Mahmud had been submitted to the tribunal in this regard.
He added that forensic reports verifying the recordings, along with video reports examined by experts from the BBC, Al Jazeera and the United Nations, had also been submitted.
The seven accused face allegations of incitement, abetment, conspiracy and contribution to the alleged crimes, as well as superior command responsibility, Tamim said. The prosecution claims they played roles in making and implementing political decisions to suppress the uprising from their respective positions.
The six accused in custody are scheduled to be produced before the tribunal on November 22. The tribunal also directed that Mirza Azam be produced immediately if arrested.
Tamim further said the investigation into allegations that six coordinators of the July uprising were picked up and tortured in Detective Branch custody was nearing completion.
Earlier, on November 2, the prosecution formally submitted charges against the seven leaders.
The charges allege that the accused played significant roles at the policymaking level of the Awami League government in suppressing the July-August 2024 uprising. They were allegedly involved in political decisions to crush the movement, impose a curfew and plan killings under its cover through meetings of the 14-party alliance.