Crimes Against Humanity: Prosecution seeks death penalty for Hasina, Kamal
Staff Reporter :
The prosecution of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has sought the death penalty for ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal in a case over crimes against humanity linked to last year’s July Uprising.
ICT Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam made the appeal on Thursday before the tribunal bench headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Majumdar of ICT-1, concluding five consecutive days of prosecution arguments.
Tajul urged the court to award the highest punishment for Hasina and Kamal, saying the magnitude of their crimes justified capital punishment.
However, he left the issue of sentencing former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who testified as a state witness, to the tribunal’s discretion.
“During the July Uprising, 1,400 students and civilians were killed. If a death sentence is given for killing one person, Sheikh Hasina deserves to be hanged 1,400 times,” Tajul said during the hearing.
“Since that’s not possible, we seek the maximum penalty under the law. Only then will justice be served.”
“A hard-nut criminal”
Speaking to the media later, Tajul described Hasina as unrepentant, claiming she had issued threats against activists from India even after fleeing Bangladesh.
“She has shown no remorse for the atrocities and killings she orchestrated. She continues to act like a hard-nut criminal,” the chief prosecutor said.
“As the mastermind—the ‘queen bee’—behind all these crimes, she deserves the ultimate punishment. Anything less would be unjust.”
Kamal’s role as “second-in-command” Tajul further alleged that Kamal was part of a “Gang of Four” that planned and directed the killings. “The planning sessions took place at his residence.
He approved drone strikes and the use of helicopter gunfire,” he said, adding that Kamal personally supervised the operations and reviewed footage of the attacks.
“For his role as second-in-command, the prosecution is seeking the death penalty for Kamal,” Tajul stated.
The prosecution also requested that the tribunal order compensation for the families of the deceased and injured, to be paid from the assets of the accused, noting that many victims were the main breadwinners of their households.