HC questions VIP status for Ghulam Azam's family at airport

The High Court yesterday questioned the legality of the action of providing VIP status to three of convicted war criminal Ghulam Azam's family members, including his wife, at a waiting room of the capital's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on April 8.
The court issued a suomoto rule asking the Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh (Caab) chairman, home secretary and four other government officials to explain in two weeks the criteria under which the privilege had been provided.
The HC bench of Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman also asked the Caab chairman to submit a report by May 12 stating what steps had been taken against officials who provided it.
The rule and order came following a report published in Bangla daily Janakantha on April 9.
Supreme Court lawyer Muntasir Uddin Ahmed placed the daily's report before the HC bench, saying there was a government order barring the war criminal's family members from leaving the country, let alone be provided the VIP status.
The HC fixed May 12 for passing further orders, he told The Daily Star.
The report says Ghulam Azam's wife Afifa Azam, his son's wife Tasnim Anjum and his nephew Lutful Kabir were scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia and the airport's director, Group Captain Jakir Hasan, provided the privilege hiding their identities from immigration. 
Later, intelligence officials informed airport officials about their identities and the three were sent back to their residences, the report said.
The former Jamaat-e-Islami ameer, who had been serving 90-years' imprisonment for masterminding war crimes during the Liberation War, died at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University on October 23 last year.