Shapla Chattar Massacre
Arrest warrants issued for 31, including Sheikh Hasina
Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Army Chief Major General Aziz Ahmed. Collage by Agamir Somoy.
The International Crimes Tribunal has taken cognizance of formal charges against 41 individuals, including ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, former Army Chief General Aziz Ahmed, and former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed, in a case filed over the murders centered around the Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel in 2013.
Ten people have already been arrested in this crimes against humanity case. Today (Monday), the Tribunal issued arrest warrants for 31 fugitives, including Sheikh Hasina. The prosecution had filed a petition seeking arrest warrants for them. The three-member tribunal, led by Chairman Justice Md. Nazrul Islam of the International Crimes Tribunal-2, passed the order this afternoon.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for August 16.
Currently, nine accused are in custody in this case. They are—former minister Dr. Dipu Moni, former State Minister for Home Shamsul Haque Tuku, retired Major General Ziaul Ahsan, former IGP A.K.M. Shahidul Haque, former Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Mollah Nazrul Islam, President of the Advisory Council of the Ekattorer Ghatak-Dalal Nirmul Committee Shahriar Kabir, former DIG Abdul Jalil Mandal, journalist Farzana Rupa, and Mozammel Babu.
Earlier, the Chief Prosecutor said that the prosecution has found evidence of 58 deaths in the Shapla Chattar massacre. Of these, the investigating agency has identified 32 in Dhaka, 20 in Narayanganj, 5 in Chattogram, and 1 in Cumilla.
On May 5, 2013, after the day-long Hefazat-e-Islam rally, law enforcement agencies carried out a brutal attack on the gathering at Shapla Chattar at night. Following the political change on August 5 (this year), Hefazat-e-Islam filed a complaint with the tribunal seeking an investigation into the incident.
