PM detained, tortured at JIC during 1/11

International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) Chief Prosecutor Md Aminul Islam on Saturday said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was detained and tortured at the Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) during the military-backed caretaker government in the 1/11 period.

He made the remarks after tribunal judges, prosecutors and defence lawyers inspected the JIC, an alleged secret detention facility at the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) headquarters in Dhaka, Saturday morning.

Aminul said the inspection was part of the tribunal’s efforts to examine alleged secret detention facilities where victims of enforced disappearance were reportedly held and tortured for prolonged periods.

Two enforced disappearance cases involving former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and several former and serving army officers are currently being tried before the tribunal.

The prosecution has identified alleged secret detention facilities at Kochukhet and the headquarters of Rab-1 in Uttara. On August 1, tribunal judges inspected the Task Force for Interrogation (TFI) Cell at the Rab-1 headquarters, which prosecutors described as an alleged “Aynaghar”.

Aminul had earlier requested that the tribunal inspect the alleged detention centres, arguing that such visits were necessary to ensure a fair trial.

He said judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia had also conducted similar site visits during trials.

Referring to the tribunal’s Rules of Procedure, the chief prosecutor said judges have the authority to inspect any place if they consider such a visit necessary for a fair trial.