The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) is likely to hold hearing on a leave to appeal petition filed by the state against the High Court judgment that acquitted all the people convicted by the lower court in murder and the Explosives Substances Act cases filed over the 2004 grenade attack on Awami League rally in the capital's Bangabandhu Avenue, on May 4.
Confirming the information to newsmen, defence counsel Mohammad Shishir Manir said the matter came to the apex court cause list for Sunday, but the Appellate Division had to adjourn the hearing till Sunday, passing a "not today" order.
"Justice AKM Asaduzzaman, who was one of the judges of the High Court division that came up with the judgment at the High Court, was holding a hearing as a member at the apex court bench. According to the rules, a judge who has given a verdict in the High Court cannot hear the same case in the Appellate Division. That is why the matter will come on the cause list on the reconstituted bench on Sunday next," said the defence counsel.
A High Court division bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain on December 1, 2024, pronounced the verdicts, scrapping the lower court judgment in the two cases.
The court came up with the verdict after holding a hearing on the death references, criminal and jail appeals filed in the two cases.
"Death Reference is rejected, all appeals are allowed, all rules are absolute" said the identical short judgments pronounced by the High Court bench.
"The court on Sunday scrapped the lower court judgment and acquitted all the convicts including Tarique Rahman and Lutfozzaman Babar. It rejected all the death references and allowed all the appeals," defence counsel Mohammad Shishir Manir said on that day.
"The court also observed that the lower court trial was illegal as it was not held in line with the law. No eyewitnesses were examined in the cases, rather all the witnesses, who were examined, heard about the incident," he said.
Advocate Manir further said the court also observed that the lower court concerned delivered the judgement on the basis of a confessional statement of Mufti Abdul Hannan, adding: "But his confessional statement has no evidential value as it was taken by force."
The High Court concluded its hearing on November 21 and kept the matters on the Curia Advisory Vault (CAV), a Latin legal term meaning the court awaits the verdict. The two case matters came up on the cause list for Sunday.
At least 24 people were killed and many others were injured in the August 21, 2004 attack.
A Dhaka court on October 10, 2018, sentenced to death 19 people, including former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar and awarded life imprisonment to another 19, including BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman, in the murder case filed over the incident.
In his judgement, Judge Shahed Nuruddin of Dhaka's Speedy Trial Tribunal also sentenced 11 others to different terms of jail.
