The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) prosecutor declared as hostile the seventh witness called against Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Matiur Rahman Nizami.
After the deposition given by Pradip Kumar Dev yesterday, the prosecutor said he found him hostile because the witness denied the testimony he gave to the investigating officer.
Pradip Kumar Dev, 62, came to give his deposition against Nizami on charges of crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971. He told the tribunal: “I know about the murder of some Hindus at Karamja union during the Liberation War. On May 8, 1971, some razakars including Shukur, Ahad, Afzal and Moslem came to the house of Megha Thakur. That day they killed some Hindu people. I was a witness.”
When the prosecution asked him if he had on an earlier occasion told the investigation officer (IO) about the incident, Pradip said: “I cannot remember.” This answer led to the prosecution team whispering between themselves in the courtroom.
After the deposition, the tribunal asked the defence to cross-examine the witness. But the defence could not do so because their senior counsels were not present in court due to the hartal.
It was then that prosecutor Mir Iqbal Hossain declared the witness hostile and pleaded to cross-examine him. After the tribunal’s approval, Mir Iqbal asked the witness whether he gave any depositions to IO Abdur Razzak on November 6, 2010. The witness’s answer was the same as before: “I cannot remember.”
Tribunal chairman ATM Fazle Kabir expressed dissatisfaction over the cross examination of the witness, and told Mir Iqbal, “You cannot ask about that [deposition]. The deposition he gave to the IO is not relevant here. So please do not go there.”
The prosecution then stated their witness had somehow become biased towards the defence.
Nizami was indicted on May 28 last year on 16 counts of crimes against humanity. Charges against him include genocide, rape, torture, abduction, confinement and conspiracy, which he allegedly committed in Pabna and Dhaka during the Liberation War.
The tribunal adjourned proceedings until May 19.
