WAR CRIMES Sayedee’s jail until death upheld [ Tritiyo Matra News ]

WAR CRIMES Sayedee’s jail until death upheld

Local May 16, 2017

The Appellate Division on Monday upheld its previous verdict that had commuted the death sentence of war criminal Jamaat-e-Islami leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee to imprisonment until death.
A five-judge bench chaired by chief justice SK Sinha pronounced the verdict dismissing two review petitions — one filed by Sayedee for his acquittal of war crime charges and the other filed by the government seeking his death sentence.
The chief justice pronounced the verdict just after ending the hearing in the two review petitions, saying, ‘Both review petitions are dismissed with expunction of some observation’ about the war crime prosecutors engaged in Sayedee’s case.
The court heard the petitions in two sessions on Sunday and Monday.
On September 17, 2014, the Appellate Division in a majority decision reduced Sayedee’s death sentence to imprisonment until death on three counts of murder, rape and forcible conversion of Hindus to Islam committed at Parerhat, Pirojpur during the 1971 War of Independence.
In January 2016, Sayedee filed the review petition seeking his acquittal while the government filed the other petition seeking Sayedee’s death sentence.
Sayedee was the lone war criminal whose death sentence was commuted to life-term.
The apex court earlier upheld death sentences for sixth other war criminals and they were later hanged on charge of crimes against humanity.
Sayedee’s son Masood Sayedee, who seemed smiling soon after the verdict was announced, told reporters that his father was deprived of justice.
He said that Sayedee was now 79-year-old detained at Kashimpur Central Jail part-1 since July 29, 2010.
Attorney general Mahbubey Alam told reporters that Sayedee’s death sentence handed by the International Crimes Tribunal might have been upheld if the war crimes investigation agency had done their job properly.
As the attorney general repeatedly argued for death sentence of Sayedee, the chief justice reminded him, ‘You are principal law officer of the state, not of the government.’
He said that the court needed to consider the gravity of offence committed by the accused.
The chief justice said that the Appellate Division maintained a ‘philosophy’ in sentencing Sayedee.
The attorney general failed to show any reference of giving death sentence on a review petition, as the court asked him.
The court said that Sayedee’s sentence might be different if the prosecutors could produce all evidence.
The chief justice said that some non-practising lawyers engaged as war crimes prosecutors committed ‘misconduct’ by regularly attending meeting of Gatak Dalak Nirmul Committee, which has a political agenda.
He said that public prosecutors being public servant cannot attend meeting of such a committee.
The chief justice made the remark after advocate AM Aminuddin, appearing for war crimes prosecutor Syed Haider Ali, argued for deleting from the Appellate Division verdict some observations criticising the prosecutors engaged in Sayedee’s case.