The High Court yesterday (on Monday) acquitted all the death-row convicts in a case filed over the murder of a schoolboy at Baniachang upazila in Habiganj in 1994.
The higher court also acquitted another death-row convict in another case filed over the murder of a woman in Gazipur 23 years ago. The High Court bench of Justice Syed Md. Ziaul Karim and Justice Sashanka Shekhar Sarkar acquitted four death-row convicts of Habiganj child murder case, dismissing the death reference and allowing appeal filed by the convicts. Deputy Attorney General SM Ashraful Haque George represented the state in the court.
According to him, the trial court had sentenced five accused to death. However, one of the accused named Ahad died while the appeal was pending. The High Court acquitted the rest convicts in the murder case.
SM Ashraful Haque George, however, said that they will file appeal to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court challenging the High Court’s verdict.
Ziaul Haque, 13, son of Sirajul Islam of Agua village at Baniachong upazila in Habiganj was killed on May 13 in 1994 due to a land dispute. The next day, police recovered his body from Pachasingda village.
Mother of the child Rupchan Bibi filed a case. After investigation, police submitted charge-sheet against six people. One of them died during the trial.
After the trial, on May 9 in 2016, a Habiganj court sentenced the five accused to death.
On the other hand, the HC bench of Justice Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain and Justice AKM Zahirul Haque acquitted the only death-row convict named Abul Kalam alias Kalu Mia who was sentenced on charge of killing a woman, named Karimun Nesa in Gazipur.
The HC bench issued the verdict dismissing the death reference in the trial court’s death sentence.
Deputy attorney general Amit Das Gupta represented the state in the court, while Advocate Masud Hasan Chowdhury Parag, Advocate SM Alim and Advocate Mizanur Rahman appeared for the accused.
According to the case statement, Chan Mia of Chanpara area in Gazipur city was married to Karimun Nesa. After marriage, Karimun reportedly developed extramarital relationship with Abul Kalam alias Kalu Mia of Chanpara area.
At one stage, Karimun Nesa and her husband Chan Mia sought divorce following the pressure from Kalu Mia.
Karimun Nesa went missing while going to her brother’s house from her sister Rahiman Nesa’s house in the evening on January 12 in 1999.
On January 25, her body was recovered from under the water hyacinth in the pond next to her house.
Later, her brother Safiz Uddin filed a murder case with Joydevpur Police Station accusing Kalu Mia and some other unnamed persons. The police filed the charge-sheet against Kalu Mia and four people in the court.
After the trial, on January 21 in 2017, a Gazipur court sentenced Kalu Miah to death. The court, however, acquitted the other accused in the case- Nazim Uddin, Jalal Uddin and Fazlul Haque.