BNP on Monday night said it believes justice has been served
through the International Crimes Tribunal’s verdict sentencing deposed Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina to death for crimes against humanity committed during
the July-August Uprising.
“After a long judicial process, following international
standards, the International Crimes Tribunal has delivered its verdict against
Awami fascist Sheikh Hasina and her two accomplices. This verdict has ensured
justice,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
He shared the party’s formal reaction at a press briefing
after a meeting of the BNP Standing Committee at the party chairperson’s
Gulshan office.
Fakhrul said people at home and abroad had long called for
accountability for the crimes committed under the previous regime.
“The people of Bangladesh and the international community
have been waiting for justice for the brutal acts of murder, torture and
genocide carried out by the fallen dictator and her associates,” he said.
Fakhrul said the tribunal handed down the maximum punishment
under the law to Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal,
while former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who
cooperated with the court, received a reduced sentence of five years’
imprisonment.
He said the BNP is firmly committed to the rule of law and
urged the country’s people to stay alert in this regard.
Fakhrul said their party also demanded fair trials for all
other accused persons in other cases.
“With this verdict, we believe the souls of those who were
victims of enforced disappearances, killings and extrajudicial executions over
the past sixteen years — and the thousands who were killed during the 2024
student uprising — will find some peace. The anger of their families will ease
to some extent,” the BNP leader said.
The BNP Standing Committee meeting, chaired virtually by
Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman from London, began at 8:30pm and continued for
two hours.
BNP Standing Committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain,
Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Salahuddin Ahmed were also
present at the press briefing.
Earlier in the day, the tribunal convicted Sheikh Hasina and
two others in a case related to crimes against humanity committed during last
year’s July–August uprising, in which more than 1,000 people were killed.
The ICT-1 sentenced Sheikh Hasina to death, while former
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Kamal also received the death penalty. Former
Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who gave testimony as
a state witness, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment.
The court further ordered the confiscation of the properties
of Sheikh Hasina and Asaduzzaman Kamal in favour of the state.