Ramna Batamul bomb attack: Explosives case still awaits verdict

A quarter of a century has elapsed since the deadly bomb attack at the Ramna Batamul Pahela Baishakh celebrations in 2001, yet the case filed under the Explosives Substances Act remains unresolved, even though the murder trial concluded more than a decade ago.

On 14 April 2001, a series of bomb blasts shattered the Bengali New Year festivities at Ramna Batamul, killing nine people instantly; another later died in hospital. Two cases were subsequently filed—one for murder and the other under the Explosives Substances Act.

While the murder case was settled 13 years after the incident, proceedings in the explosives case have stalled at the stage of recording the accused’s statements under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The matter is currently being heard by Metropolitan Special Tribunal-15.

Court records show that witness testimonies were completed on 21 March 2022, when the court also scheduled proceedings under Section 342. The case was later transferred to Metropolitan Special Tribunal-1 on 28 July 2022 and subsequently to Metropolitan Special Tribunal-15 on 3 January 2023. It has remained at the self-defence hearing stage for over four years.

On 31 March this year, a scheduled hearing could not proceed as prison authorities failed to produce the accused before the court. Judge Taohida Akter of Metropolitan Special Tribunal-15 then fixed 9 July as the next date for hearing.

Dhaka Metropolitan Public Prosecutor Omar Faruq Faruqi said the murder case has already been disposed of, while in the explosives case, testimonies from 54 of the 84 listed witnesses have been recorded. “The case is now at its final stage,” he said, adding that progress had been limited during what he described as the tenure of the previous “fascist government”.

He expressed hope that a verdict would be delivered before the next Pohela Boishakh, citing earlier delays caused by the absence of key witnesses and proceedings in the High Court. “As the murder charge has already been proven, we expect the maximum penalty in this case as well,” he added.

Additional Public Prosecutor Mahfuz Hasan said efforts were underway to expedite the trial, though progress has been hampered by the fact that several accused are being held in different district prisons in connection with other cases, delaying their appearance in court. He expressed optimism that justice would soon be delivered to the victims’ families.

Read More

Pahela Baishakh celebration begins at Ramna Batamul

Defence counsel Md Zashim Uddin, however, said several accused have been in custody for 17 to 18 years and were not named in the initial First Information Report (FIR). “They were implicated later on the basis of a confessional statement by one accused, without corroborative evidence,” he argued, adding that prolonged detention undermines the principles of justice.

The accused in the explosives case include Arif Hasan alias Suman alias Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Ullah alias Jewel, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Hafiz Selim Hawlader, Maulana Sabbir alias Abdul Hannan Sabbir, Mufti Ab Hay, Maulana Shaukat Osman alias Sheikh Farid, Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Alhaj Maulana Md Tajuddin, Hafiz Jahangir Alam Badar, Hafiz Maulana Abu Taher, and Maulana Akbar Hossain alias Helal Uddin. Of them, seven are in custody, two are absconding, and two are on bail.

On 23 June 2014, the Second Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Ruhul Amin delivered the verdict in the murder case, sentencing eight individuals to death.

Those sentenced to death were Mufti Abdul Hannan, Maulana Akbar Hossain, Arif Hasan Suman, Maulana Tajuddin, Hafiz Jahangir Alam Badar, Maulana Abu Bakar alias Hafiz Selim Hawlader, Maulana Abdul Hai, and Maulana Shafiqur Rahman. Six others—Shahadat Ullah Jewel, Maulana Sabbir, Shaukat Osman alias Sheikh Farid, Maulana Abdur Rauf, Maulana Yahya, and Maulana Abu Taher—were given life imprisonment. All convicts were also fined Tk 50,000 each.

According to the prosecution, the bombings at Ramna Batamul during Pahela Baishakh celebrations on 14 April 2001 killed nine people on the spot, with another later dying of injuries. Sergeant Amal Chandra of Nilkhet Police Outpost filed two separate cases with Ramna Police Station on the same day under murder and explosives laws.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) submitted charge sheets against 14 accused after nearly eight years. The trial faced delays due to repeated changes of investigating officers, supplementary charge sheets, and the failure of investigators to appear in court despite summons.

On 29 November 2008, CID Inspector Abu Hena Md Yusuf, the eighth investigating officer, submitted separate charge sheets in the two cases. Both were transferred to the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court on 1 January 2009, where charges were formally framed on 16 April that year.

The murder case was later moved to Speedy Trial Tribunal-3, while the explosives case was sent to Speedy Trial Tribunal-1. However, the explosives case remains pending before the trial court to this day.