POBNEWS24, Dhaka Dec 1, 2024 : The High Court has acquitted all the accused in the much-discussed August 21 grenade attack case in Bangladesh, including Tarique Rahman, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, and former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfuzzaman Babar, who was sentenced to death.
The High Court bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain announced the verdict on Sunday (December 1), overturning the verdict of the trial court.
On August 21, 2004, a grenade attack took place at an Awami League anti-terrorism rally on Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital. Judge Shahed Nuruddin of Dhaka’s Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 had pronounced the verdict in the case filed in this incident in 2018. Those who were sentenced to death by the lower court were former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfuzzaman Babar, former Deputy Minister Abdus Salam Pintu, Major General (retd) Rezzakul Haider Chowdhury, Brigadier General (retd) Abdur Rahim, owner of Hanif Paribahan Md. Hanif, militant leader Maulana Tajuddin, Maulana Sheikh Abdus Salam, Maulana Sheikh Farid, Maulana Abu Said, Mufti Moinuddin Sheikh alias Abu Jandal, Hafez Abu Taher, Md. Yusuf Bhat alias Majed Bhat, Abdul Malek, Mofizur Rahman alias Mohibullah, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Md. Jahangir Alam, Hossain Ahmed Tamim, Rafiqul Islam alias Sabuj and Md. Ujjwal alias Ratan.
Earlier, the same bench of the High Court concluded the hearing on the death references and appeals of the accused on November 21. On that day, the court kept the two cases pending for verdict (CAV). Following this, the two cases were put on the court’s agenda for Sunday for verdict.
It is worth noting that the 10 trucks of weapons that were seized in Chittagong, Bangladesh, about two decades ago were supposed to go to the Indian separatist armed organization “United Liberation Front of Assam” or ULFA and some other groups.
The party had repeatedly claimed that the involvement of the top leadership of BNP in this case filed during the Awami League government was politically motivated.
Regarding the 10 trucks of weapons, Anup Chetia, a ULFA leader who was arrested at that time, told the media at that time, “The weapons that have been seized at various times, including the 10 trucks of weapons in Bangladesh, are not ‘only’ ULFA. He said that these weapons may also include weapons of other separatist organizations in the northeast of India.
“ On December 21, 1997, Anup Chetia was arrested along with two associates from a house in Dhaka’s Adabor. He was the general secretary of ULFA at that time. Three cases were filed against him on charges of infiltration, hoarding of foreign currency and possession of a satellite phone. A Dhaka court sentenced him to three, four and seven years in prison in the three cases. While he was in prison, 10 trucks of weapons were seized in April 2004.
