Appeal in Abu Sayed killing case to be decided after full verdict review: ICT chief prosecutor
The tribunal sentenced two policemen to death, three other officers to life imprisonment, and handed various jail terms to 25 others in the case.
Chief Prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), Aminul Islam, said a decision on whether to appeal the Abu Sayed murder case to the Appellate Division will be made after the full verdict is published and reviewed.
He made the remarks today (9 April) while briefing reporters following the tribunal's verdict in the crimes against humanity case over the killing of Abu Sayed, a student of Begum Rokeya University and the first martyr of the 2024 July Uprising.
The tribunal sentenced two policemen to death, three other officers to life imprisonment, and handed various jail terms to 25 others in the case.
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Speaking at the briefing, Aminul Islam expressed gratitude to journalists, particularly NTV's Moinul Haque. "It was because he, along with his cameraman, risked their lives to record this video that the entire world got to see this brutal killing."
When asked whether the prosecution was satisfied with the verdict, he said the sentences generally reflected the accused's roles as charged.
"However, after receiving the full judgment, we will review it. If we find grounds regarding charges from which some accused were acquitted, we will consider filing an appeal," he added.
Aminul noted that all 30 accused in the case were convicted, with none acquitted, although the severity of sentences varied based on judicial assessment of evidence.
On the issue of command responsibility, the chief prosecutor said that senior officials, including former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and the then inspector general of police, had already been punished in a separate case.
"This command responsibility applies uniformly across all cases in Bangladesh," he said.
"In this particular case involving Begum Rokeya University, superior officers were also convicted. We do not believe we failed to prove any of the charges," Aminul added.
Family members of the victim expressed mixed reactions to the verdict.
Abu Sayed's brother, Abu Hossain, said the sentences generally corresponded to the roles of the accused but noted that the family would review the full judgment before deciding on any further legal steps.
The plaintiff in the case, the deceased's elder brother Ramzan Ali, said, "We believe, and the entire country believes, that the justice we have received today is, on the whole, Alhamdulillah."
"But regarding the senior police officers in Rangpur, their sentences are too lenient, we think. And the president of the university unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League, Pomel Barua, should have been sentenced to death," he added.
