The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday resumed the appeal hearing of Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam, who was sentenced to death by the International Crimes Tribunal for crimes against humanity during the Liberation War.
The hearing was particularly significant as Shishir Manir appeared in place of Barrister Ehsan A Siddique, who had previously conducted the case following the death of his father Barrister Abdur Razzak.
Appearing before a seven-member full bench headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, Manir raised serious questions regarding the credibility of prosecution witnesses and the fairness of the original trial proceedings.
The lawyer questioned the credibility of the 4th, 5th, 9th and 10th witnesses on the 3rd, 4th and 5th charges against Azharul, based on which he was sentenced to death. Manir argued that the testimonies were contradictory, vague and lacked basic factual consistency. He said, "One witness cannot name the twelve months in English, but he knows exactly what Azharul Islam was doing on that specific date."
A witness reportedly said during his cross-examination that he did not know his own date of birth or marriage date. Another witness claimed that he only recognized Azharul but could not name the principal of the college or leaders of any student organizations at the time.
Manir further stated that many witnesses listed by the state were never produced before court and the tribunal accepted a state petition to excuse the presence of 17 witnesses, which denied the defendant's opportunity for cross-examination. He insisted that the cross-examination is a global standard for ensuring justice. According to him, amendments were made to the law and rules at the time to obstruct this vital legal process.
Highlighting irregularities, he mentioned that a state witness who refused to testify was sent to jail from the court. In another instance, prominent witness Sukharanjan Bali was reportedly abducted from the tribunal gate in broad daylight and later found in India. The defendant's request to review CCTV footage of the incident was dismissed by the tribunal.
Focusing on the charges against Azharul, Manir argued that a witness claimed to have seen him set fire to a village from a distance of six kilometers after getting off a train with Pakistani soldiers.
Regarding the Jharua Beel massacre, one witness reportedly testified that Azhar was not involved. "We told the court that the witness said he was not involved," told Manir. "But in the earlier hearing, the Appellate Division said it is not fit here and we should assume otherwise."
Despite the questionable credibility of witnesses, Azharul was sentenced to death.
However, one of the judges in the Appellate Division later observed that those witnesses were not reliable and subsequently acquitted Azharul Islam on those specific charges.
Following the lengthy hearing, the Appellate Division adjourned proceedings and fixed May 8 for the next hearing.
