Bangladesh ex-MP gets death for war crimes
NEW DELHI: A special tribunal dealing with war crimes committed during Bangladesh’s independence war against Pakistan in 1971 on Wednesday sentenced a former lawmaker to death and seven others to life in prison for murder and other crimes.
The tribunal sentenced Sakhawat Hossain, a former parliament member belonging to the Jamaat-e-Islami party, to death on Wednesday.
He and one of the other defendants were present in the court.
The six others were tried in absentia.
Hossain was a central committee member of Islami Chhatra Sangha, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami party at the time, and was accused of acting as a local commander of a group that aided Pakistani soldiers.
He left Jamaat-e-Islami and joined the Bangladesh Nationalist Party headed by former prime minister Khaleda Zia.
KHALEDA ZIA GETS BAIL
Also on Wednesday, Zia got bail in 10 cases involving charges of arson and sedition on Wednesday. The decision came after Zia appeared in the court of metropolitan sessions judge Kamrul Hossain Mollah amid tight security and sought bail.
The sedition charge was linked to Zia’s comments on the number of people killed during the liberation war against Pakistan. A lawyer filed a case against her, accusing her of distorting history.