July atrocities: ICT verdict in Chankharpul killing case today

The International Crimes Tribunal-1 is set to deliver its verdict today in a case linked to the killings of six people in the capital’s Chankharpul area during the 2024 mass uprising.

This will be the second judgment in cases over crimes against humanity connected to the July uprising, which left more than 1,400 people dead and around 25,000 wounded, many with permanent disabilities, after law enforcers and armed Awami League men opened fire on protesters during the student-led movement that ultimately toppled the Sheikh Hasina government.

On November 17 last year, the tribunal delivered its first verdict in a case for crimes against humanity over crackdown on student-led protests, sentencing deposed prime minister Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal to death in absentia, and former IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun, who turned approver, to five years’ imprisonment.

In the Chankharpul murder case, eight accused policemen are: former Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner Habibur Rahman; joint commissioner Sudip Kumar Chakraborty; former additional deputy commissioner Sha Alam Mohammad Akhtarul Islam and former assistant commissioner of Ramna zone Mohammad Imrul; former Shahbagh Police Station inspector (operations) Arshad Hossain; and constables Sujon Hossain, Imaz Hossain and Nasirul Islam. Of them, Arshad, Sujon, Imaz and Nasirul are in custody, while the rest are absconding.

According to the prosecution, Habibur, along with Sudip, Akhtarul, Imrul and Arshad, bore command responsibility and they were involved in a joint criminal enterprise, accused of incitement, abetment, and complicity. 

Constables Sujon, Imaz, and Nasirul allegedly used rifles to shoot protesters in Chankharpul and adjacent areas, causing deaths to the six people on August 5, 2024. The victims were Shahriar Khan Anas, Sheikh Mahdi Hasan Junayed, Mohammad Yakub, Rakib Hawlader, Ismamul Haque, and Manik Mia.

On December 24 last year, the ICT-1 set January 20 for delivering the judgment in the Chankharpul murder case. 

The investigation agency submitted its probe report to the Chief Prosecutor’s Office on April 20 last year, and the tribunal took cognisance of the charges on May 25. On July 14, charges were framed, and the trial began on August 10 with the prosecution’s opening statements.

The prosecution placed digital evidence, including video and audio recordings, documentary materials, reports from national and international bodies, witness statements, victim testimonies and bullet fragments recovered from the victims’ bodies. A letter written by victim Anas to his mother before leaving home to join the uprising was read out before the court and accepted as evidence.

Twenty-six prosecution witnesses and one defence witness testified in the case.