Coronavirus causing delay in disposal of sensitive cases

The Coronavirus outbreak has led to an unusual delay in disposals of sensitive cases, including Ahsanullah Master Murder Case, August 21 grenade attack Case, Nusrat Jahan Rafi Murder Case and Holey Artisan Bakery Attack Case.
However, the functions of the ongoing virtual courts started on May 11. Only the bail application and the writ petition on urgent matters are being heard in virtual courts.
As a result, litigants are yet to receive the benefit as its regular proceedings before the shutdown.
Before the pandemic began Ahsanullah Master Murder Case Appeal was on the cause list in the Appellate Division, August 21 Grenade Attack and Nusrat Jahan Rafi Murder Case were on the way to be heard at the High Court Division.
The regular proceedings of the Supreme Court have remained closed for more than two months resulting in a halt to the disposal of the sensational cases.
Since March 13 the Supreme Court has virtually remained closed for coronavirus pandemic.
Additional Attorney General Md Momtaz Uddin Fakir said the Attorney General's Office would take proper steps to dispose of the sensational cases on priority basis when the regular proceedings of the Supreme Court began.
It is not possible to hear sensitive cases in the virtual court, he said.
Ahsanullah Master, former Awami League lawmaker, was brutally killed in 2004. The appeal in connection with his murder case is still pending with the Appellate Division.
The appeal was included on the cause list of the Appellate Division in January last year for a  hearing.
An Appellate Division bench led by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain was all set to start the hearing on the appeals on January 7 last year.
But the apex court bench on that day deferred the hearing till March 4 last year as all relevant documents required for the hearing were not produced before it.
Assaulters killed Ahsanullah Master, a freedom fighter, and wounded 18 others in a burst of fire on a rally of Swechchhasebak League at Noagaon near the MP's house in Tongi on May 7, 2004. The court accepted the appeals of the convicted accused 15 months ago in the sensational August 21 Grenade Attack Case.
But the procedures came to a sudden halt on March 26 due to the shutdown.
A High Court bench was ready to hold a hearing on the sensational Feni madrasa student Nusrat Jahan Rafi Murder Case but it couldn't start the proceedings as the court was closed due to ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
The HC bench led by Justice Soumendra Sarker was assigned in the last week of March to hear and dispose of the Nusrat Jahan Rafi death reference but it too came to a stop due to the pandemic.
Nusrat, a 19-year-old madrasa student in Feni, died on April 10 last year, four days after she was set afire.
She was sexually harassed by the then madrasa principal Siraj Ud Doula, on March 27 last year. Her mother filed a case against Siraj, who was later sacked, arrested and sent to jail.
A Feni court on October 24 last year delivered the death sentence to all 16 accused, including Siraj Ud Doula and two expelled local Awami League leaders, over the murder.
On December 5 the documents in the sensational Holey Artisan Bakery Attack Case reached the High Court as a death reference to examine the trial court verdict that sentenced seven militants to death.
A Dhaka court on November 27 sentenced seven militants to death for their involvement in the 2016 Holey Artisan Bakery attack terming it a disgraceful attack aimed at assassinating the non-communal character of Bangladesh.