ICT verdict on Obaidul Quader, 6 others today; prosecution seeks maximum penalty

The International Crimes Tribunal is set to deliver its verdict today (Tuesday) in a crimes against humanity case against Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader and six other senior leaders.

The defendants include leaders of the Awami League and its youth and student wings, who are accused of involvement in the deadly crackdown on the July-August 2024 uprising.

Prosecutors have sought the maximum punishment for all seven defendants, alleging they coordinated and incited attacks on protesters and planned violence to suppress the movement.

They are also accused of facilitating the use of lethal force in a crackdown that resulted in killings and attempted killings across the country.

A three-member panel of International Crimes Tribunal-2, headed by Chairman Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, will deliver the verdict. The other members are Judge Md Manjurul Basid and Judge Noor Mohammad Shahriar Kabir.

It will be the seventh verdict delivered by the tribunals since August 5, 2024. The two tribunals have previously delivered six verdicts, including in cases involving Sheikh Hasina, the Chankharpul killings, the Ashulia killings, the Inu killing and the shooting of a protester hanging from a cornice in Rampura.

All seven defendants are fugitives.

Besides Quader, the accused are Awami League Joint General Secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim; former State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat; Jubo League President Sheikh Fazle Shams Parash and General Secretary Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil; and Chhatra League President Saddam Hossain and General Secretary Wali Asif Inan.

The tribunal kept the case pending for verdict after closing arguments ended on August 17. Prosecutors sought the maximum sentence for all seven, while state-appointed lawyers representing the absconding defendants asked the tribunal to ensure justice.

The case centres on four formal charges: coordinated directives and incitement to suppress the uprising; planning violence at meetings; involvement in the use of lethal weapons, indiscriminate force and restrictions on internet services; and killings and attempted killings that prosecutors say amounted to crimes against humanity.

The prosecution alleges the defendants acted together to mobilise Awami League activists against protesters and were involved in planning and carrying out the violent suppression of the movement.

Prosecutors also presented what they described as specific audio evidence, backed by forensic reports, concerning armed attacks on students at Dhaka University.

Prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim told the tribunal that plans and conspiracies to kill protesters were discussed at various government meetings during the uprising and said audio and video evidence submitted during the trial supported the prosecution's case.

He also alleged that Quader had issued instructions to shoot protesters on sight, leading to indiscriminate firing and the deaths of numerous people through August 5.

The prosecution called 29 witnesses and submitted recordings of several conversations involving Quader during the uprising. Among the witnesses was Sharif Osman Hadi.

Quader allegedly told Saddam and Inan to beat protesters

Some of the prosecution's central evidence came from recorded telephone conversations that it says show Quader directly instructing Chhatra League leaders to attack protesting students.

In one call presented to the tribunal, prosecutors said Quader telephoned Chhatra League President Saddam Hossain and General Secretary Wali Asif Inan on July 11, 2024.

"Why aren't you hitting them? Why aren't you beating them? Why are you allowing them to grow?" Quader is heard telling Saddam in the recording.

Saddam replies that police had instructed Chhatra League members not to confront the protesters.

"We want to go there and confront them politically, so we can do that. But sir, we were told not to," Saddam says. "We were told not to go towards Shahbagh or elsewhere. They repeatedly called and told us not to confront them. That's what they kept telling us, sir."

Quader then asks who had given the instruction.

"Our police, plus Biplab da. They were saying that," Inan replies.

"Biplab shouldn't be saying that!" Quader responds.

Prosecutors argued that Quader's intervention encouraged Chhatra League leaders and activists to confront the protesters.

Another recording presented to the tribunal concerned restrictions on internet access as the protests intensified.

Quader to Palak: "Slow down the internet a little"

According to prosecutors, the conversation showed Quader instructing then-State Minister for Information and Communication Technology Zunaid Ahmed Palak to slow internet services. The prosecution said the measure was subsequently approved by then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and implemented by Palak.

"Slow down the internet a little," Quader is heard telling Palak.

"Should I get the leader's permission first?" Palak replies.

"Get it," Quader says.

Palak then says: "We've been told that unless she says..."

Quader subsequently tells him to ask Hasina before slowing the internet, according to the recording played before the tribunal.

The case also includes allegations that instructions were issued to use Chhatra League members to attack students and other protesters, that television sets were ordered switched off when broadcasters showed footage of the unrest, and that abductions were carried out through then-Detective Branch chief Harun.

The defence disputed the prosecution's attempt to hold all seven defendants responsible for the crackdown.

State-appointed defence lawyer M Hasan Imam argued that a shoot-on-sight order had been issued to protect people's lives and property and said three of his clients did not occupy positions from which they could command security forces or others.

"My three clients were not in any 'commanding position'," Imam told the tribunal during closing arguments. "I hold one person responsible for issuing the instructions. Therefore, my clients neither killed anyone nor ordered anyone to be killed."

Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam, however, told the tribunal that the prosecution had proved all four charges and argued that the offences committed by the seven defendants were grave.

He said they bore responsibility for the killing and wounding of large numbers of people during the July-August uprising and should receive exemplary punishment.

The prosecution asked the tribunal to show no leniency and impose the maximum sentence on each defendant.

Closing arguments began on August 4, when Tamim presented the overall background of the case. Over five consecutive working days, prosecutors presented evidence, documents and arguments in support of the charges against the seven defendants before completing their submissions.

Osman Hadi's testimony in the Obaidul Quader case

The tribunal also heard evidence from Sharif Osman Hadi, who gave investigators a detailed account of what he alleged were the roles of the defendants during the uprising.

Hadi described attacks he said he had witnessed and provided details of where and when protesters were attacked and who allegedly opened fire. He also told investigators that he had received death threats from numerous telephone numbers.

"I received death threats from countless numbers. I also filed a general diary with Shahbagh police station over this," Hadi said in his statement.

"If they are not brought to justice quickly, it is unimaginable how much mass killing Awami terrorists could carry out in the future. If they are not brought to justice, the July mass uprising will remain in question."

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