ICT prosecution gets one day to grill ex-NTMC chief Ziaul

The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has granted the prosecution team one day to interrogate Maj Gen (retd) Ziaul Ahsan, the former director general of the National Telecommunication Monitoring Center (NTMC).

The three-member tribunal, led by its Chairman Justice Md Golam Mortuza Majumdar, issued the order on Tuesday (12 November) after hearing a petition filed by the prosecution led by Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam.

Sacked army official Ziaul, who was arrested in mid-August, is facing charges of crimes against humanity committed during the anti-discrimination movement led by students and the mass uprising in July and August.

There are numerous allegations against him, said Tajul. "The ICT investigation agency has received many complaints against him over murders and enforced disappearances and has even found evidence linking him to such crimes."

"He has already been arrested. Further investigation is required to clarify his role and identify those involved in carrying out these crimes. We will conduct a formal interrogation on the scheduled date," he added.

Ziaul, who was a two-star ranked Bangladesh Army officer, was relieved from service by the army on 6 August, a day after the Awami League government was ousted in a mass uprising.

Until then, he had been serving as the chief of National Telecommunication Monitoring Center since 2022. Prior to that, he served in the Rapid Action Battalion.

Ziaul had taken the army's refuge fearing a threat to his personal security. The army handed him over to the police on 15 August night. Police later showed him arrested in a case filed at New Market Police Station over the killing of Shahjahan Ali during the quota reform protests on 16 July.

On 16 October, he was also shown arrested in another case filed with New Market police station over plotting to abduct and murder Col (retd) Md Tauhidul Islam Chowdhury in December 2018.