Death sentences of Prof Mohiuddin, caretaker Jahangir upheld
The Appellate Division on Tuesday upheld death sentence of Rajshahhi University’s associate professor Mia Mohammad Mohiuddin for killing university’s his senior fellow S Taher Ahmed.
The 59-year-old geology and mining professor Taher went missing on February 1, 2006 and the police recovered his body from a septic tank behind his house on the campus on February 3, 2006.
The Appellate Division also upheld death sentence of Taher’s house caretaker Jahangir Alam and the life-terms given by the lower court to Jahangir’s brother Abdus Salam and Salam’s brother-in-law Nazmul Alam.
A six-judge bench chaired by Hasan Foez Siddique pronounced the verdict after rejecting the appeals filed by the convicts.
In May 2008, Rajshahi Speedy Trial Tribunal sentenced Mohiuddin, Jahangir, his brother Abdus Salam and Salam’s brother-in-law Nazmul to death.
Mohiuddin in association with the caretaker planned to kill Taher over Mohiuddin’s previous enmity over the deprivation in his promotion as professor, according to the trial court’s verdict.
The lower court, however, acquitted two of the accused — former RU Islami Chhatra Shibir president Mahbubul Alam Salehi and Jahangir’s father Azimuddin Munshi — of the murder charge.
On April 21, 2013, the High Court after hearing the death reference of the four and their appeals, upheld the death sentences of Mohiuddin and Jahangir, reduced the death sentences of Salam and Nazmul to life term imprisonment.
All the four convicts later appealed against their convictions.
Muhiuddin was defended by senior lawyer SM Shajahan while lawyer Imran A Siddiq appeared for Jahangir and his brother Salam and lawyer Shamsul Islam for Nazmul.
On March 16 the Appellate Division posted April 5 for delivering its verdict on the appeals filed by former Rajshahi University teacher Mia Mohammad Mohiuddin and employee Jahangir Alam challenging a High Court verdict that had sentenced them to death for killing university’s another teacher S Taher Ahmed.
When the chief justice asked lawyer SM Shajahan to reply why the court should take a lenient view for Mohiuddin, who was not only murdered professor Taher but also instigated three other convicts to kill his colleague.
The lawyer contended that his client should be acquitted of the murder charges on the ground that he had already been served in the condemned cell for 14 years.
Attorney general AM Amin Uddin, deputy attorney general Biswajit Debanath, Taher’s daughter and SC lawyer ShaguftaTabassum Ahmed appeared for the state.
News Courtesy:
https://www.newagebd.net/article/167283/death-sentences-of-prof-mohiuddin-caretaker-jahangir-upheld
