The International Crimes Tribunal-1 (ICT-1) has scheduled December 14 to deliver its order on whether charges will be framed against 13 individuals; including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, in a case involving allegations of enforced disappearances and torture at Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) during the previous Awami League government.
Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mazumder, chair of the three-member ICT-1 panel, set the date after both prosecution and defence completed their submissions.
Chief Prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam argued in favour of indicting the accused, while defence lawyers sought their discharge.
The prosecution has brought five specific charges of enforced disappearance and torture against the 13 accused.
Three of them; Sheikh Md Sarwar Hossain, Md Mahbubur Rahman Siddiqui and Ahmed Tanvir Mazhar Siddiqui, were produced before the tribunal during Tuesday’s hearing.
On October 8, the tribunal had already taken cognisance of charges against 30 individuals, including Sheikh Hasina, in two separate cases linked to alleged enforced disappearances and torture at Taskforce for Interrogation (TFI) Cell and the JIC during Awami League’s tenure.
In the JIC case, the accused include: Sheikh Hasina; former security and defence adviser Tarique Ahmed Siddique; Md Akbar Hossain; Md Saiful Abedin; Md Saiful Alam; Md Tabrej Shams Chowdhury; Hamidul Haque; Mohammad Touhidul Islam; Sheikh Md Sarwar Hossain; Kabir Ahammed; Md Mahbubur Rahman Siddiqui; Ahmed Tanvir Mazhar Siddiqui and Mokhchurul Haque.
Separately, five additional charges have been brought against 17 individuals; among them Sheikh Hasina and Tarique Ahmed Siddique, over similar allegations tied to the TFI Cell.
The other accused in that case are: Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal; Benazir Ahmed; M Khurshid Hossain; Barrister Md Harun Ur Rashid; Anwar Latif Khan; Md Jahangir Alam; Tofayel Mostafa Sarwar; KM Azad; Md Qamrul Hasan; Md Mahabub Alam; Abdullah Al Momen; Md Sarwar Bin Qashem; Md Khairul Islam; Md Moshiur Rahman Jewel and Saiful Islam Suman.
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