War criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury claimed at the International Crimes Tribunal that he had been in erstwhile West Pakistan during March 29, 1971–April 20, 1974 to dismiss all the charges brought against him by the prosecution. The three defence witnesses echoed him.
However, the tribunal in its verdict on October 1, 2013 mentioned that the defence had “miserably failed to prove its plea by documentary evidence that the accused stayed in West Pakistan during whole period of the Liberation War of Bangladesh.”
Despite this, Salauddin’s counsel Khandaker Mahbub Hossain mentioned about the same information at the Supreme Court to seek acquittal of his client.
Salauddin testified at the tribunal as the first defence witness. He also placed two relatives and a schoolfriend. But the defence did not produce any travel or residential documents to show the date of the so-called visit.
On the other hand, the investigation officer submitted a paper clipping of the daily Pakistan dated September 29, 1971 that says the son of Fazlul Quader sustained severe injury and the driver killed when miscreants attacked his car on September 20. He was provided treatment in hospital.
Then deputy inspector general of Special Branch in East Pakistan in a fortnightly report of political situation, prepared on October 2, also mentioned about the injury of Salauddin on September 20 due to the attack by freedom fighters.
The prosecution also produced a doctor who had been on duty at Chittagong Medical College Hospital in 1971. Dr AKM Shafiullah, then assistant registrar at Surgical Unit 1, testified that Salauddin had been treated at the hospital for his leg injury.
Moreover, 14 prosecution witnesses submitted at the tribunal that they had seen Salauddin accompanied by the Pakistan Army and razakars at different villages of the locality and at Goods Hill.
The convict had left Bangladesh in September 1971 and returned to the country in 1974 after the death of his father in jail, the tribunal concluded.
Moreover, a Dainik Bangla report published on January 8, 1972 said: “Hundreds of students were tortured at Goods Hill and on July 17, 1971, student leader Faruq was killed by Salauddin Quader. From March 26 until December 16, there was always a platoon the occupation army deployed in the Goods Hill.”