DHAKA: There is no legal bar to execute war crimes convict Jamaat leaders Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan as they did not file appeal petition by December 3 against the verdict of International Crime Tribunal that awarded death penalty to them.

Mueen and Ashraf, now living in London and New York respectively, will be hanged after they return home.

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, chief law officer of the government, made the disclosure to banglanews.

He said, as per the court order, they were masterminds and chief executors of intellectuals’ killing during the country’s war of liberation.

International Crimes Tribunal Act is a special act. If the convicts surrender before the court but limitation law will not be applicable for them.

On November 3, International Crimes Tribunal-2 sentenced Mueen and Ashraf to death for killing of intellectuals during the country’s war of liberation in 1971.

The tribunal sentenced them to death as all 11 charges brought against them had been proved.

On September 30, the tribunal kept pending (CAV) the verdict in the cases of Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan after ending the arguments from the prosecution and the defense.

Mueen and Ashraf were indicted jointly  facing 11 charges of crimes against humanity that include the abduction and killing of 18 intellectuals including Shahidullah Kaiser and Selina Parvin between December 11 and December 15 in 1971.

On May 11, the tribunal made a public announcement in newspapers, asking the war crimes suspects to appear before the tribunal within 10 days of the publication of the announcement. As per the ICT order, notices were published in national dailies on May 12.

Among the 18 intellectuals, nine were Dhaka University teachers, six were journalists and three were physicians, according to the probe report of the prosecution.

On April 25, the prosecution submitted formal charges against the accused. The prosecution brought 16 charges against the two under Section 3(2) of the Act which deals with crimes against humanity and peace, genocide, killing and rape.

Ashraf and Mueen were indicted on June 24 on 11 counts of crimes against humanity.

The tribunal indicted the duo in absentia on that day. The rules of the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973 provides for trial in absentia if any accused fails to appear before the tribunal within the designated time.

BDST: 1530 HRS, DEC 14, 2013
Edited by: Rubaiat Saky, Senior Newsroom Editor/M. Mahbub Alam, Asst Output Editor
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