5 ex-BCL men get death

Five expelled activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League of Jahangirnagar University unit were sentenced to death and six others to life term imprisonment today for killing Zubair Ahmed, a student of the university, in 2012.

Judge ABM Nizamul Haque of the Speedy Trial Tribunal-4 of Dhaka also acquitted two other accused -- Mahamudul Hasan Masud of history department and Najmul Hossein Plabon of public administration -- of the charge as allegations brought against them were not proved.

Zubair, an honours final year student of English department, was tortured and stabbed allegedly by some activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League, pro-Awami League student body, on January 8, 2012. He died from his injuries in a Dhaka hospital the next day.

Among the accused, Khandaker Ashikul Islam alias Ashik, Rashidul Islam Raju, Khan Mohammad Rais alias Sohan, Zahid Hasan of zoology department and Mahabub Akram of government and politics department were awarded death penalty.

The court sentenced life to Ishtiaq Mehbub alias Arup of philosophy department, Najmus Sakib Topu of biochemistry and molecular biology, Kamruzzaman Sohag of philosophy, Abhinandon Kundu of statistics, Majharul Islam and Shafiul Alam Setu.

On completion of the arguments from the prosecution and defence, the court on January 28 had fixed February 4 for pronouncing the judgment. But the new date was set as seven of the accused, now in jail, could not be produced before the court on security grounds amid the ongoing BNP-led alliance's hartal.

The rest of the accused were shown fugitives after they escaped from the court dock in February 2014.