The war crimes tribunal will deliver its verdict today in the case of former BNP minister and alleged Peace Committee chairman of Joypurhat, Abdul Alim, who is charged for his involvement in the killing of at least 585 people in 15 incidents during the 1971 Liberation War.
The three-member International Crimes Tribunal 2, headed by Justice Obaidul Hassan, set the date on Tuesday, nearly two weeks after the trial process was completed on September 22. Two other members of the tribunal are Justice Mojibur Rahman Miah and Justice Shahinur Islam.
This will be the second war crimes verdict involving a BNP leader and eighth since the first verdict on January 15 this year. The government constituted the tribunal, its prosecution and investigation agency in 2010 under the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973 to try the persons responsible for committing crimes against humanity during the liberation war.
Alim, now aged 83, was arrested on March 27, 2011 and was the first accused among those charged with war crimes to enjoy bail throughout the trial process that began on July 5 last year. He was granted bail on March 31 as he was confined to a wheelchair and required the assistance of two persons to move about.
When the case was kept for verdict, the tribunal denied him bail and ordered that he be sent to jail. He is now at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital.
Alim was indicted on June 11 last year on 17 counts of crimes against humanity, allegedly for killing several people, forcing deportation of a number of people, and for abduction, torture and arson during the War of Independence.
Specifically, the tribunal framed the charges on three counts of genocide and 14 counts of crimes against humanity. The prosecution had originally pressed 28 counts of charges against him. It could not produce any witnesses in charges four and five.
According to the formal charges, Alim had been involved in the killing of 370 Hindus in Koroi Kadipur of Joypurhat on April 26, 1971. He was also involved in the killing of 10 Hindus at Uttarhat Shahor in Harunjahat under Khetlal police station in May and killing of 26 young men in an open field near Joypurhat Railway Station in late June.
After announcement of the date of verdict on Tuesday, prosecutor Zead-Al-Malum told journalists that 15 charges out 17 in the formal charges had been proved beyond doubt. “We expect the court will give him the maximum punishment,” he said.
On the other hand, defence counsel Tajul Islam claimed that the prosecution could not prove the case and that the accused was a “victim of political harassment and envy.”
At the time of war, accused Alim was 41-42 years old. He was a leader of razakar, an auxiliary force of the Pakistani occupation army, and also chairman of the Peace Committee in Joypurhat. He was an influential leader of the Convention Muslim League and vice-chairman of Bogra district council in 1971, according to the prosecution.
Born on November 1, 1930 in West Bengal of India, Alim had migrated to Joypurhat with his family in 1950. In 1958, he joined the Muslim League.
After the war, he was elected as the Joypurhat municipality chairman in 1975 and 1977. Later, Alim first became the textile minister and then communications minister during the regime of military strongman and BNP founder General Ziaur Rahman in 1978.
Meanwhile, the case against alleged al-Badr leaders Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan has been kept for judgement while the cases against Jamaat chief Motiur Rahman Nizami and former Awami League leader Mobarak Ali alias Mobarak Hossain are nearing conclusion.