Review hearing now Nov 17

Mojaheed and Salauddin's review petitions hearings have been deferred to November 17 by the Supreme Court.

The Appellate Division of the SC was scheduled to hear the petitions yesterday. The two had sought reviews of the SC judgment that upheld the death penalties awarded to them by the war crimes tribunal in June and July.

The two condemned war criminals, Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mojaheed and BNP leader Salauddin, on October 14 had sought review of their SC appeal verdicts.

Meanwhile, Salauddin's wife Farhat Quader Chowdhury filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the constitutional provision that allows the trial of an individual for committing crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. 

She challenged the legality of the appointments of the first three judges to the International Crimes Tribunal-1, which dealt with the BNP leader's war crimes case.

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam told The Daily Star that Farhat prayed to the HC to declare the appointments of three ICT judges illegal. He said the constitution had earlier allowed the trial of a group of individuals for committing crimes against humanity, but the 15th amendment allowed trial of individuals.

He said the writ petition was filed in order to make the trial and conviction of Salauddin questionable.

Huzzatul Islam, a lawyer for Salauddin, told The Daily Star that they would move the petition before the HC for hearing next week.

Earlier in the day, the four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha deferred the hearings of the review petitions of Jamaat leader Mojaheed and Salauddin following a time petition by their principal counsel Khandker Mahbub Hossain.

The apex court rejected another petition by Salauddin's asking the court to record statements of eight people, including five Pakistanis. 

Salauddin filed the petition on October 19 to establish that he was not in Bangladesh between March 29, 1971, and April, 1974, and that he had gone to Pakistan to study at the Punjab University.

Yesterday, the SC rejected the petition saying that the prosecution had established that Salauddin was physically present in the country during the said period.

Salauddin could not produce any certificate from the university which could prove that he was studying there and was not in Bangladesh, the SC said, adding that there was no scope for recording witness statements at the review petition hearing.

Yesterday, the Appellate Division also rejected another petition filed by Mojaheed seeking its directive on the government not to harass or arrest his lawyer Shishir Manir.

The apex court said Mojaheed could move such a petition before the HC.

Mojaheed recently filed the petition saying that a team of law enforcers on the night of October 22 searched the Mohammadpur house of Shishir without any summons or warrant.

Shishir was not home at the time.

Asked about the SC deferring the review petition hearings, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said the defence lawyers would not be able to seek more time from the apex court, as the court had given them 15 days.

Chief Justice Sinha would not be in the country for a week from November 5, as he would attend a conference in Australia. But it might not be the reason for the SC giving the defence time, he added.   

The International Crimes Tribunal issued execution warrants for them on October 1, a day after the SC released the full verdicts.