Former Army Chief General (Retd) Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan has said that irregularities occurred in procurement during his tenure as army chief, but he did not initiate any investigation as the matter fell outside his jurisdiction.
He made the comment on Tuesday while responding to cross-examination before a three-member bench of the International Crimes Tribunal-1, led by its Chairman Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder.
He testified in the case against former Major General (Retd) Ziaul Ahsan, who is facing charges of crimes against humanity.
The cross-examination marked the fourth and final day of questioning of the former army chief in the case concerning allegations of enforced disappearance and murder against Ziaul Ahsan. Defence lawyer Abul Hasan conducted the cross-examination.
At one stage, the defence lawyer alleged that Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan himself had been involved in corruption related to procurement during his tenure as army chief.
Rejecting the allegation, the former army chief said: “That is not true. Corruption did occur in procurement while I was army chief. However, it is not true that I refrained from investigating because I was personally involved.”
In response to a question about whether he had taken any action after identifying the illicit sources of income of the officials involved, the former army chief replied in the negative. He said he had taken no measures as the matter did not fall within his authority.
Answering another question from Ziaul Ahsan’s lawyer, Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan said that under military law there are provisions for punishment for disobeying the army chief’s orders. However, as Ziaul Ahsan was serving in the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) at the time, no warning was issued nor was any explanation sought for alleged non-compliance.
Defence lawyer Abul Hasan claimed that during Iqbal Karim’s tenure as army chief, Ziaul Ahsan had complied with all lawful orders and had not disobeyed any instruction. In response, the former army chief said: “It is not true that Ziaul Ahsan did not disobey any of my lawful orders.”
Following four consecutive days of cross-examination, the tribunal fixed March 9 for the next hearing in the case.
Earlier, on January 14, the tribunal ordered the commencement of trial proceedings against Ziaul Ahsan after framing three charges against him. The date was also set for opening statements and the recording of witness testimony. In continuation of those proceedings, former army chief Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan gave his deposition as the first witness.
