Abdul Jabbar

A tribunal in Dhaka today issued arrest warrant against former Jatiya Party lawmaker Abdul Jabbar for his alleged wartime offences committed during the Liberation War in 1971.

Accepting five war crimes charges against Jabbar, the International Crimes Trubunal-1 led by its Chairman Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order and fixed June 2 as the next date of hearing.

Jabbar, as the chairman of Mathbaria Peace Committee, had “played a key role” in the formation of Razakar force there and “led it” to commit crimes during the war.

The prosecution has brought five charges for killing, mass killing, looting and forced conversion in 1971.

According to one of the charges, Jabbar at an open meeting ordered the killing of two freedom fighters of Mathbaria, Pirojpur, on May 16 and the looting of about 100 houses.

Members of Razakar, an auxiliary force of the Pakistan occupation army, upon his “instructions” on May 17, opened fire on the Hindus at Phuljuri village, leaving Sarda Kanta Paik dead, and looted around 360 houses.

The Razakars and Jabbar on May 22 again allegedly shot indiscriminately the Hindus of Noli village of Pirojpur. Eleven people were killed and 60 houses were looted there.

Besides, around 200 Hindus were forcibly converted to Islam at Tushkhali village and were forced to follow Islamic rituals, according to the formal charges.

About 37 Hindus of Angulkata and Mathbaria villages were taken to Surjamoni killing field by the Razakar force formed by Jabbar on October 6-7. Twenty-two of them were shot dead and the rest were severely wounded, said Zahid.

The prosecution told the court that he went abroad in 2009 and also returned home on the same here and since then the accused is at large.

Investigators, who have found Jabbar's involvement in at least five crimes, submitted the probe report to the prosecution on April 29.

Jabbar's involvement was also found in the killing of 11 people and looting of and setting fire to 60 houses at Noli village in Pirojpur.

He was elected lawmaker from Mathbaria in 1986 and 1988 on a Jatiya Party ticket but retired from politics later. There has been no trace of him since 2009, according to an  agency formed to investigate crimes committed during the war.