Staff Reporter :
National Citizen Party (NCP) convener and July Movement leader Nahid Islam on Sunday said that the Awami League, as a political party, must face trial for crimes against humanity committed during the July-August 2024 mass uprising.
Speaking to reporters after testifying before the International Crimes Tribunal-1, Nahid argued that sufficient evidence has already been presented to establish the responsibility of the Awami League as an organisation.
“The Awami League should be brought under trial as a party, and there are legal avenues for doing that. We will also appeal to the tribunal,” he said.
He added that Sheikh Hasina, as party chief, took the political decision to unleash violence against the people to cling to power.
“The people overthrew her through resistance. This was a crime committed politically by the Awami League. Therefore, the party itself should be held accountable,” Nahid told reporters.
The tribunal, a three-member bench headed by Justice Golam
Mortuza Majumder, concluded the cross-examination of Nahid Islam on Sunday after he appeared as the 47th prosecution witness in the case.
Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam, along with prosecutors Mizanul Islam and Gazi SH Tamim, conducted the hearing, while state-appointed lawyer Amir Hossain represented the absconding accused Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal.
Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, arrested in this case, earlier sought the tribunal’s permission to become an approver.
His request was accepted, and he testified as the 36th witness, pleading guilty and providing details about the chain of command during the crackdown. Lawyer Zayed Bin Amjad represented Al-Mamun during the hearing.
On July 10, the tribunal formally framed charges of crimes against humanity against Sheikh Hasina, Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and Abdullah Al-Mamun, and ordered the commencement of trial proceedings.
In addition to this case, two other trials are underway against Sheikh Hasina.
One involves allegations of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings during her government’s tenure, while another concerns the deaths at a Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel.
Rights groups and victims’ families have long alleged that the Awami League leadership, its party cadres, sections of the state administration, and loyal law enforcement personnel committed genocide and crimes against humanity while suppressing the nationwide student-people uprising in July-August 2024.
Two separate international crimes tribunals are currently overseeing these proceedings.
Observers note that if the tribunal entertains petitions to bring an entire political party under trial, it could set a precedent unprecedented in Bangladesh’s legal and political history.
