Staff Reporter :
The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has ordered the start of trial proceedings against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and 16 others on charges of crimes against humanity, including alleged enforced disappearances and torture at the Rapid Action Battalion’s Taskforce for Interrogation (TFI) cell during the Awami League regime.
The order was issued on Tuesday by a three-member ICT-1 bench led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Majumder after rejecting discharge petitions filed by the defence. The tribunal framed charges against all accused and directed that the trial formally commence.
The prosecution has been asked to present its opening statement on 21 January, when witness examinations are also scheduled to begin.
The accused include Sheikh Hasina, Tarique Ahmed Siddique, several former and serving army officials, and others. Of the 17 accused, some are currently in custody, while others remain absconding.
Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam, along with prosecutors Gazi MH Tamim, Shaikh Mahdi and others, appeared for the prosecution. Lawyers representing both detained and fugitive accused were also present during the hearing.
After the charges were framed, the tribunal read out the allegations to each of the arrested accused individually. When asked to enter pleas, all detained defendants pleaded not guilty.
In line with tribunal procedure, a date for recording witness testimonies is expected to be fixed at least 21 days after the formal framing of charges.
Security was tightened in and around the tribunal premises from early morning, with additional deployments of police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and members of the armed forces.
After 10am, police produced 10 arrested army officers before the tribunal, transporting them in prison vans from the special jail at Dhaka Cantonment. Those produced included former RAB additional director general Brigadier General Md Jahangir Alam; Brigadier Generals Tofayel Mostafa Sarwar, Md Kamrul Hasan and Md Mahabub Alam; Colonels KM Azad, Abdullah Al Momen, Anwar Latif Khan (on pre-retirement leave), and former RAB intelligence wing director Colonel Md Mashiur Rahman; and Lieutenant Colonels Saiful Islam Suman and Md Sarwar Bin Kashem.
