The war crimes tribunal on Thursday rejected a petition that sought review of the indictment order against senior Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Kashem and set November 17 for placing opening statement in the case.
The International Crimes Tribunal 2, led by Justice Obaidul Hasan, stated that earlier the tribunal 1 had rejected the review petition through a chamber order without any hearing on it.
November 7 was set for beginning the trial against Mir Kashem, a key financier of Jamaat, for his alleged involvement with the atrocities in 1971 Liberation War.
On September 27, defence counsel Tanvir-Al-Amin filed the petition with the tribunal 1. On September 30, the case was transferred to the tribunal 2.
The senior defence counsel, however, on the same day pleaded to make a decision on the review petition of his client’s indictment. Following this, the tribunal 2 then transferred the responsibility to the other tribunal.
The prosecution brought 14 charges against Mir Kashem, who, the prosecution says was an al-Badr leader in Chittagong during the Liberation War. The accused is also the chairman of Diganta Media Corporation which owns the daily Naya Diganta and Diganta TV.
He was arrested at the newspaper office in the capital on June 17 last year.
On April 28, Law Minister Shafique Ahmed told parliament that Jamaat had signed an agreement with a US lobbyist firm to make the trial of war criminals “controversial.” He said Mir Kashem had paid $25m for this purpose while claiming that the government had copies of the receipts and the agreement.
According to the prosecution, Mir Kashem was the Chittagong district general secretary of Islami Chhatra Sangha, the then student wing of Jamaat, and commander of al-Badr. He had set up makeshift camps at different places of the port city where people who were assisting the freedom fighters were brought in and tortured.