Death row war crimes convict Salauddin Quader Chowdhury has filed a petition with the Supreme Court, pleading to summon eight fresh witnesses to testify for him in the review.
A defense counsel of Salauddin submitted the petition on Monday morning, reports BSS.
The five Pakistanis are former Pakistani prime minister Mohammad Miah Sumro, former Pakistani railways minister Ishak Khan Khakwani, Pakistani Dawn Group chairman Ambar Harun Saigal, Pakistani social activist Munib Arjumand Khan, Viqarunnisa Noon's grandson Riyaj Ahmed Noon.
The three Bangladeshis include US diplomat Osman Siddique, Judge of Bangladesh High Court Justice Shamim Hasnain and his mother Zinnat Ara Begum.
State counsels, including Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, said there is no scope of allowing a fresh petition of death-row-convict Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, through which he pleaded for allowing eight witnesses to testify for him before the apex court.
"It is totally up to the court; but if this plea is taken into consideration, convicts after that would start filing such petitions one after another. He had submitted different types of document during his trial at the tribunal as well in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court," Mahbubey Alam told journalists.
"The scope for review is very little in criminal case. There might have chances for filing review in case of mistake committed by the court. He also filed this fresh plea after completion of the timeframe for filing the review. A chaos will be created if this plea taken into consideration," he emphasized.
Prosecutor Barrister Tureen Afroz said: "As far as I know, there is no scope of summoning the witnesses at the stage of review. But this is totally under the jurisdiction of the Apex Court. Why hadn't they submitted this plea earlier? They were allowed to produce five witnesses before the tribunal, but they failed to do that. Ultimately four including Salauddin himself vouched for him."
BNP leader Salauddin Quader Chowdhury has filed an application, seeking review of the order of Appellate Division that upheld his death sentence pronounced by International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) 1 for war crimes.
On October 1, 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) 1 sentenced Salauddin to death for his crimes against humanity during 1971 Liberation War.
Salauddin lodged appeal against his sentence on October 29, 2013 and the Appellate Division in its verdict upheld the death sentence for him on July 29, 2015.
