Ex-MP Saiful, 5 others get death over killings, burning of bodies in Ashulia on 5 Aug
The tribunal has also handed down varying prison terms to eight others.
The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has sentenced six people, including former Dhaka-19 MP Saiful Islam, to death and handed down varying prison terms to eight others in a crimes against humanity case over the killing of seven people and the burning of six protesters' bodies in Ashulia on 5 August 2024.
The verdict was delivered today (5 February) by a three-member bench of International Crimes Tribunal-2, led by Justice Nozrul Islam Chowdhury.
The other convicts sentenced to death are former Ashulia Police Station officer-in-charge (acting) AFM Sayed, former Ashulia Police Station sub-inspector Abdul Malek, former assistant sub-inspector Bishwajit Saha, former constable Mukul Chokder, and Jubo League cadre Roni Bhuiyan.
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Alongside the death sentences, the tribunal ordered the confiscation of all properties belonging to those condemned to death and directed that the seized assets be distributed among the families of the victims.
Of the 16 accused in the case, seven were sentenced to life imprisonment, while two others received seven-year prison terms. One accused, former Ashulia Police Station sub-inspector Sheikh Abjalul Haque, was granted a pardon after turning state witness and testifying against the other defendants.
Seven others were sentenced to life imprisonment: former Dhaka Range DIG Syed Nurul Islam; former superintendent of police Md Asaduzzaman Ripon; former additional superintendent of police (Crime and Ops), Dhaka district, Md Abdullahil Kafi; former additional superintendent of police (Savar Circle) Md Shahidul Islam; former inspector (Investigation) Mohammad Masudur Rahman; then Detective Branch inspector Arafat Hossain; and former inspector (Operations) Nirmal Kumar Das.
Two accused received seven-year prison terms: sub-inspector Arafat Uddin and assistant sub-inspector Kamrul Hasan.
Among the accused, eight are currently under arrest: former additional superintendent of police (Crime and Ops), Dhaka district, Md Abdullahil Kafi; former additional superintendent of police (Savar Circle) Md Shahidul Islam; then Detective Branch inspector Arafat Hossain; sub-inspector Malek; sub-inspector Arafat Uddin; assistant sub-inspector Kamrul Hasan; sub-inspector Sheikh Abjalul Haque; and constable Mukul Chokder.
Meanwhile, former lawmaker Saiful Islam and seven other accused remain absconding and were tried in absentia.
This judgment marks the third verdict delivered by the tribunal since it was reconstituted following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government in August 2024.
The court had designated 5 February for the final ruling after keeping the case under consideration for judgment (CAV) since 20 January. CAV, or Curia Advisory Vault, is a Latin legal term indicating that the court has reserved the case for judgment.
The case centres on events in Ashulia, Savar, on 5 August 2024, when six young men were shot dead by police. According to the prosecution, their bodies were later piled into a police van and set on fire.
"Tragically, one of the victims was still alive when the fire was set. Police poured petrol on the van and burned him alive," Chief Prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam told journalists during a press briefing last year.
Another person was killed the previous day, bringing the total number of victims in the case to seven.
To establish that the burning of the bodies was deliberate, the prosecution submitted extensive evidence, including 313 pages of supporting documents, testimonies from 62 witnesses, 168 pages of exhibits, and digital evidence stored on two pen drives.
The tribunal formally began the trial on 21 August last year after framing charges of crimes against humanity. Prosecutor Mizanul Islam led the state's final rebuttal, while defence arguments were presented by a team of lawyers including Amir Hossain and Mirajul Alam.
