Two new prosecution witnesses against Jamaat leader Mir Kashem Ali have said the accused had threatened to chop them into pieces and dump them in Karnaphuli River during the Liberation War. During their testimonies, the witnesses also accused Kashem of forcing them to disclose information about the plans and positions of freedom fighters.
Sixty-year-old Salauddin, who is the nephew of eighth prosecution witness Eskander Alam Chowdhury, submitted his deposition at the ICT 2 yesterday and corroborated the deposition of his uncle.
“Mir Kashem grilled me at Dalim Hotel and repeatedly asked about the freedom fighters. When he failed to get any information, he told me, ‘If you do not tell me, I will cut you in pieces and dump those in the river Karnaphuli.’ Mir Kashem then asked al-Badr men to beat me more,” said Salauddin alias Chuttu Miah.
Salauddin said his uncles, Eskender and Jakaria, and cousins, Nazim and Jafar, were abducted by al-Badr men on November 30, 1971. All of them were confined and tortured at the Dalim Hotel, before they managed to free themselves with the help of family members.
Following Salauddin’s deposition, his uncle Jakaria, 72, also testified at the court and gave similar description of events as his nephew.
He said armed al-Badr men captured them from their home just four or five days after the Eid-ul-Fitr in 1971. The abducted men were first taken to the MMC Model School in Chandgaon, while all the confined people were later moved to the Dalim Hotel, Jakaria added.
The witness told the tribunal that some al-Badr men came and flooded the room with water to prevent them from sleeping on the floor.
After their brief depositions, defence counsel Advocate Mizanul Islam cross-examined the witnesses, suggesting that both of them were giving deposition under the instructions of the prosecution. Both witness disagreed with the defence counsel.
Following the cross-examination, the two-member ICT 2 adjourned the hearing until Tuesday.
Kashem, who is facing 14 charges for committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971, was produced at the tribunal during the deposition.