Jumbangla Desk: The verdict on the death reference and the appeal of the defendants in the much-discussed August 11 grenade attack case will be announced on Sunday (December 1).
The High Court bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain will announce this verdict.
Defense lawyer Mohammad Shishir Moni confirmed the matter on Saturday (November 30).
On October 10, 2018, 19 people including former state minister for home Lutfuzzaman Babar, former deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu were hanged and 19 people including BNP senior vice chairman Tarek Rahman, Begum Khaleda Zia's political secretary Harish Chowdhury, BNP leader Kazi Shah Moazzem Hossain Kaykobad were hanged in the August 1st grenade attack and murder case. The trial court sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Later, on November 27 of that year, the judgment of the trial court in the case reached the death reference wing of the High Court along with the necessary documents.
19 accused sentenced to death in lower court
Former Home Minister Lutfuzzaman Babar, former Deputy Minister Abdus Salam Pintu, Major General (retd) Rezzakul Haider Chowdhury, Brigadier General (retd) Abdur Rahim, owner of Hanif Paribahan. 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 aka Ratan.
19 convicts sentenced to life imprisonment
Shahadat Ullah alias Jewel, Maulana Abdur Rauf alias Abu Omar, Abu Homaira alias Pirsaheb, Maulana Sabbir Ahmad alias Abdul Hannan Sabbir, Arif Hasan alias Sujan alias Abdur Razzaq, Hafez Maulana Yahya, Abu Bakr alias Salim Howladar, Md. Ariful Islam alias Arif, Mahibul Mottakin alias Muttakin (absconding), Anisul Murchalin alias Murchalin (absconding), Md. Khalil (absconder), Jahangir Alam Badr aka Ustad Jahangir (absconder), Md. Iqbal (fugitive), Liton alias Maulana Liton (fugitive), Tariq Rahman alias Tarek Zia (fugitive), Harish Chowdhury (fugitive), Qazi Shah Mofazzal Hossain Kaykobad (fugitive), Mufti Shafiqur Rahman (fugitive), Mufti Abdul Hai (fugitive). and Ratul Ahmed Babu alias Babu alias Ratul Babu (absconding).
About 37 thousand 385 pages of documents along with the judgments of two cases filed in connection with the August 21st grenade attack reached the relevant branch of the High Court on November 27, 2018. Later, the High Court ordered the preparation of paper books of the case for hearing the death references and appeals of the accused. In continuation of that order, paper books of 10,500 pages were prepared on a priority basis.
22 of the accused have appealed against their acquittal. On the other hand, the jail appeal of 12 accused has been filed.
On the afternoon of August 21, 2004, there was a grenade attack on the Awami League rally at Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital. 24 people including Awami League's Women's Affairs Secretary Ivy Rahman were killed in that attack. Hundreds of Awami League leaders and workers including party president Sheikh Hasina were injured. Many of them are still living miserable lives with grenade splinters in their bodies. Many are permanently crippled.
