Rampura killings: ICT defers verdict, orders fresh testimony

The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has ordered fresh testimony instead of delivering the verdict in a crimes against humanity case related to the July mass uprising of 2024.

The case involves the shooting of a man hanging from a building cornice and the killing of two others in the capital's Rampura area.

The verdict in the case was scheduled to be delivered today (4 March). However, the prosecution filed a petition seeking to submit new digital evidence in the case. It also requested permission to present additional testimony. The ICT-1 later accepted the petition and issued an order accordingly.

Prosecutor Shyikh Mahdi represented the prosecution during the hearing. He sought a deferment of the verdict to allow the submission of new digital evidence and requested four weeks to complete the process.

As defence lawyers for the accused were absent, the tribunal kept the final schedule pending. A hearing on the matter is expected to take place later in the afternoon.

The prosecution had submitted the application to the registrar of ICT-1 yesterday (3 March), requesting that the verdict be deferred and fresh testimony be allowed. The matter was placed before the tribunal for hearing today.

According to prosecution sources, allegations of negligence have surfaced during the investigation into the Rampura case. One of the issues raised is that a police officer who ordered the shooting was not made an accused despite call records indicating his involvement.

The prosecution also plans to record statements from additional witnesses. For this reason, it sought to defer the verdict so that the process of recording further testimony could continue.

On 15 February, the tribunal had fixed a date for the verdict in the case. Five people, including former Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner Habibur Rahman, have been accused in the case. Among them, former ASI of Rampura police outpost Chanchal Chandra Sarkar has been arrested.

The other accused who remain absconding are former ADC of Khilgaon Zone Md Rashedul Islam, former OC of Rampura Police Station Md Mashiur Rahman, and former SI of Rampura Police Station, Tarikul Islam Bhuiyan.

State defence counsel Md Amir Hossain is representing the four absconding accused, including Habibur Rahman.

The arguments in the case concluded on 3 February. The prosecution claimed that the involvement of the five accused was clearly established through documents, including testimonies, video footage, and eyewitness statements. It also sought the maximum punishment for the accused. However, the defense lawyers also claimed their clients' innocence and sought their acquittal.

On 18 September last year, the tribunal framed charges against the five accused and ordered the trial to begin. The prosecution had submitted the formal charge on 7 August of the same year.

According to the case statement, on 19 July 2024, during the July Mass Uprising, a young man named Amir Hossain climbed onto a partially constructed building on the Banasree-Meradia road in Rampura to escape police attacks.

Police also chased him at the time. At one stage, while he was hanging from rods on the roof cornice, a police officer fired six rounds at him, leaving him seriously injured. On the same day, two men, Nadeem and Maya Islam, were killed in police firing in the Banasree area.