Jamaat leader Azharul acquitted from death penalty

The Supreme Court’s Appellate Division has acquitted Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam accepting his appeal against death penalty in a case over crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.

The full bench of the Appellate Division, led by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, delivered the verdict.

During the announcement of the judgment, lawyers of both sides and top Jamaat leaders were present in the court.

This is the first for the Appellate Division that cancelled it earlier judgement upholding the death penalty of any convicted person in the crime against humanity case.

The hearing of the appeal challenging the death sentence was concluded on May 8.

The International Crimes Tribunal sentenced him to death on December 30, 2014, in five out of the nine charges.

On January 28, 2015, the death-row convict submitted a petition to the Appellate Division claiming his innocence.

Later, on July 19, 2020, Azharul Islam, the then assistant secretary general of the party, filed the review petition with the relevant branch of the Appellate Division.

Following an appeal hearing, the Appellate Division under a bench led by then-Chief Justice Syed Mahmud upheld the death penalty in a verdict delivered on October 23, 2019.

The full text of the Appellate Division’s verdict was released on March 15, 2020, after which ATM Azhar submitted the review petition.