UNB, Dhaka: A court here on Thursday acquitted wife and son of executed war criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury while sentenced five people to different jail terms in a case filed over leaking the draft verdict of the International Crimes Tribunal-1 that sentenced him to death.
Dhaka Cyber Crimes Tribunal Judge KM Samsul Alam passed the order.
The court acquitted Salauddin Quader`s wife Farhat Quader and son Humman Quader from the charges while sentenced his lawyer AKM Fakhrul Islam to 10 years imprisonment and fined him Tk one crore, in default, to suffer, six months more rigorous imprisonment.
Besides, the court sentenced his manager Mahbubul Ahsan, Fakhrul` s associate lawyer Mehedi Hasan, two staff of the ICT-1 Nayan Ali and Faruq Hossain to seven years imprisonment and fined them Tk 10,000 each, in default, to suffer six months more rigorous imprisonment.
Earlier on August 28, a Dhaka Court deferred its judgment until September 15.
On August 4, Judge of the tribunal KM Samsul Alam fixed August 14 for delivering the judgment after completion of placing arguments in the case.
The court also sent four accused–Fakhrul, Faruq, Nayan and Mahbubul–to jail when they appeared before the court while lawyer Fakhrul`s associate Advocate Mehedi Hasan remained absconding.
On February 15, a Dhaka court framed charges against seven people, including wife, a son and a counsel for executed BNP leader Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, in the case.
DB inspector M Shajahan submitted a charge sheet to the Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Court against the seven accused on August 28, 2014.
On October 1, 2013, ICT-1 sentenced BNP standing committee member Salauddin Quader Chowdhury to death after finding him guilty of committing crimes against humanity and genocide during the Liberation War in 1971.
However, some parts of the draft verdict were found posted in the internet several hours before pronouncing the verdict.
Later, showing the copy of the draft verdict, Salauddin’s wife and son raised a complaint that the verdict was originated from the Law Ministry.
On October 4, a case was filed with Shahabagh Police Station under sections 57 and 63 of Information and Communication Technology Act.
Salauddin Quader Chowdhury was executed in the Dhaka Central Jail on November 22, 2015.
