Bangladesh leader sentenced to death

DHAKA: Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Tuesday sentenced a leader of an opposition political party to death for committing crimes against humanity during the nation’s 1971 independence war against Pakistan. The Jamaat-e-Islami party leader, Abdul Quader Mollah, was found guilty by a special war crimes tribunal in February and sentenced to life in prison. That sentence was appealed by both the defense and prosecution.
On Tuesday, a five-member panel headed by Chief Justice M. Muzammel Hossain ruled that Mollah be put to death for his role during the war. The panel found him guilty of ordering the killing of a family of four during a Pakistani army crackdown in Dhaka in March 1971. Attorney-General Mahbubey Alam said the verdict was final, with no option for another appeal through the courts. He said Mollah’s family can seek presidential clemency.
Defense counsel Abdur Razzaq said they were “stunned” by the decision. Hours after the verdict, Mollah’s party said it would enforce a 48-hour general strike beginning Wednesday across the country to denounce the ruling. Somoy TV station reported that activists from Jamaat-e-Islami’s student wing had torched a police car and smashed several cars in the southeastern city of Chittagong to protest the verdict.