War criminal Delawar Hossain Sayedee, nayeb-e-ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, who is now in the condemned cell at the Kashimpur jail in Gazipur, has reportedly expressed satisfaction after learning that the apex court has commuted his punishment.
Although the jail authorities have not yet said anything to the war criminal, he learned about the verdict from the jail warden.
Seeking anonymity, a high official of the jail told the Dhaka Tribune that he had talked to the warden and learned that upon hearing the news of the verdict, Sayedee had said “Alhamdulillah” - an Arabic phrase which means all praises go to Allah.
Quoting Sayedee, the official also said: “I instructed my lawyers beforehand to file a review petition with the Supreme Court challenging the verdict because I believe that my innocence will be proved in the court Inshallah [meaning Allah willing] if the trial is impartial.
“I am not happy because my family members and followers know that the trial was politically motivated. Moreover, nobody can keep me in the condemned cell if I have not done anything wrong,” Sayedee reportedly said.
Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, senior superintended of the Kashimpur Central Jail 1, told the Dhaka Tribune: “Jamaat leader Delawar Hossain Sayedee is still in the condemned cell. We are yet to receive any official order regarding the verdict until Wednesday evening.
“We will not give him any news until we get a copy of the verdict. Then we will also decide whether to keep him here [in Kashimpur] or send him to other jail. We will follow the athorities’ directives,” the jail super said.
A condemned cell is a prison cell where a person sentenced to death awaits execution. Sayedee was taken there after the first International Crimes Tribunal in February last year sentenced him to death for killing Ibrahim Kutti and Bisa Bali in Pirojpur in 1971. The tribunal found him guilty on six other charges of wartime offences.
The Supreme Court Appellate Division yesterday commuted the death sentence to imprisonment until death.