The second prosecution witness against the alleged al-Badr leaders Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan Thursday said the accused were behind the abduction and death of his father, martyred intellectual Prof Munier Chowdhury.
Asif Munier gave his deposition at the International Crimes Tribunal 2 for the second day. Later, counsels of the two fugitive accused, Salma Hye and Abdus Sukkur Khan, cross examined him.
The tribunal then set Sunday for the next prosecution witness.
Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman were indicted jointly on 11 charges of crimes against humanity in 1971. The charges include killing of 18 intellectuals, only days ahead of the country’s victory.
Mueen Uddin was al-Badr’s “operation-in-charge” while Ashrafuzzaman played the role of “chief executor,” according to the prosecution. They have reportedly been staying in London and New York.
In his deposition, Asif said: “On December 14, 1971, four young men came to our house on a microbus, the glasses of which were filled with mud. They captured my father and took him away. After the liberation, when newspapers published the pictures of war criminals, my uncle Rusho identified Mueen and Ashraf who came to our house that day.”
Now 46, Asif was a four-year-old child during the war. He told the tribunal that he came to know about his father’s abduction from his family members.
The witness said his eldest brother, Ahmad Munier, had joined the Liberation War at the age of 16. He is now working with the United Nations in Ivory Coast. The other sibling, journalist Ashfaque Munier Mishuk, was killed in a road accident along with filmmaker Tareque Masud and three others on August 13, 2011. Asif said his mother, Lily Chowdhury, was not in a situation to talk in a public place following the death of Mishuk Munier.
On May 2, the tribunal issued arrest warrants against the accused. Later notices were published in the national dailies asking the two accused to appear before the court. Since they did not respond, the tribunal appointed the counsels on May 27 and ordered the trial in absentia.