A Dhaka court has fixed December 31 for delivering the verdict in blogger-architect Ahmed Rajeeb Haider murder case.
Judge Syeed Ahmed of Speedy Trial Tribunal 3 on Monday afternoon set the date for pronouncing the first verdict in any blogger murder case in Bangladesh.
On May 27, the trial of the murder case began with recording the deposition of the plaintiff, also the victim's father Dr Nazim Uddin.
Earlier on May 21, the same court framed charges afresh against the eight accused in the case, responding to a plea of the public prosecutor.
Special public prosecutor of Speedy Trial Tribunal 3 Md Mahbubur Rahman filed a plea in which he urged the court to frame the charges again as the name of the murder scene was not mentioned clearly in the previous indictment documents.
Of the accused, Mufti Jasim Uddin Rahmani has been indicted under section 302 and 107 of the penal code while the others were indicted under section 302 and 34.
On March 18, Judge Ruhul Amin of the Fourth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court passed an indictment order against Mufti Jasim, chief of militant group Ansarullah Bangla Team, and seven from North South University.
After the indictment, the court fixed April 21 to start a trial in the case.
On May 12, the case was shifted to Speedy Trial Tribunal 3 from Dhaka's Fourth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court for quick disposal.
Read more: 8 indicted afresh in Blogger Rajeeb murder
In this regard, a gazette was sent to Speedy Trial Tribunal 3 from the Fourth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court.
Earlier, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a gazette notification for transferring the case documents of the Rajib murder case to Speedy Trial Tribunal 3.
Rajeeb, known as Thaba Baba in the blogging community, was hacked to death on February 15, 2013 near his Pallabi home, only 10 days into the historic movement at Shahbagh demanding the death penalty for the 1971 war criminals and a ban on Jamaat-e-Islami and its student body Islami Chhatra Shibir.
A day after the murder, the victim’s father Nazim Uddin filed a murder case with Pallabi police station.
Ansarullah is a Bangladeshi follower of al-Qaeda.
Take a look: Blogger Rajeeb murder accused denies involvement
Its chief Jasim was arrested on September 2, 2013. Jasim gave a confessional statement before a magistrate, mentioning that the students inspired by his sermons might have killed Rajeeb.
“Instigator” Jasim and his six followers – all expelled students of North South University – pleaded not guilty and demanded justice. Another accused, also a former NSU student, is currently on the run.
The accused students are “planner” Redwanul Azad Rana (now a fugitive), Faisal Bin Nayeem alias Dip, Maksudul Hassan alias Anik, Ehsan Reza Rumman, Nayeem Sikder alias Irad, Nafiz Imtiaz and Sadman Yasir Mahmud.
Of them, Rana is also a prime suspect in the blogger Avijit Roy murder. The DMP recently announced a Tk5 lakh bounty to help police track and arrest Rana.
Earlier the DB police sent letters to Immigration Police and the BGB to stop him from fleeing the country.