A Satkhira court on Tuesday sentenced four people, including former BNP MP Habibul Islam Habib, to life in prison in an arms case filed in connection with the attack on the convoy of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2002.
Judge Biswanath Mondal of Satkhira Special Tribunal-3 announced the verdict on Tuesday.
The court also sentenced 44 other to seven years in jail.
On April 12, the court completed the argument hearing.
On August 30, 2002, Awami League chief Hasina, the then leader of the opposition, went to Satkhira Central Hospital to visit the wife of a freedom fighter who had been raped.
Her motorcade was attacked in front of the Kalaroa Upazila BNP office while she was on her way back to Dhaka. Aside from the bomb attack and vandalism of cars, gunshots were also fired at Hasina.
Central leaders of the Awami League accompanying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina along with local activists and journalists were all injured in the attack.
Moslem Uddin, the then general secretary of the Kolaroa Awami League later filed a case with Kalaroa police station. However, the case was rejected.
He then filed the case with Satkhira Judicial Magistrate's Court in this connection, naming the then BNP MP Habibul Islam Habib as an accused.
The court then ordered Kolaroa police to investigate the case.
However, police submitted a report on December 25, 2003, claiming that the accusations cited in the case were not true.
Challenging the report, the plaintiff filed a no-confidence petition, which was dismissed by the court. Later, the plaintiff filed a revision petition with the High Court.
On July 28, 2013, the High Court passed an order directing the police to reconsider the case and conduct a fresh investigation in the case.
In a follow-up to the order, the Satkhira Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court ordered the Kalaroa police to take action against those who attacked Hasina's convoy.
Police subsequently pressed formal charges against 50 people, including Habibul Islam Habib, following an investigation.
On February 5, 2021, A Satkhira court convicted 50 people and sentenced them to different terms in another case filed over the attack.
All of the accused are activists and workers of the BNP, with the former MP and two others facing 10 years in prison.
Among the convicts, former MP Habibul Islam Habib and two others were sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment while 47 others jailed for different terms. The minimum sentence is four years of imprisonment.
