The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in a statement on Wednesday urged the Bangladesh government to halt the execution of war criminal Muhammad Kamaruzzaman.

"We urgently call on the Government of Bangladesh to halt the execution of Muhammad Kamaruzzaman, leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, which is reportedly imminent, following the rejection of his appeal on Monday by the Supreme Court," says the statement. 

Kamaruzzaman was meted out death penalty on charges of crimes against humanity by the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal.

The trial was reportedly marked by irregularities and failed to meet "international fair trial standards", says the statement received here from Geneva.

Raising questions about the fairness of Kamaruzzaman's trial, the statement says, "The UN Human Rights Committee, which interprets the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Bangladesh has ratified, has stressed that 'in cases of trials leading to the imposition of the death penalty, scrupulous respect of the guarantees of fair trial is particularly important' and that any death penalty imposed after an unfair trial would be a violation of the right to life."

Mentioning Kamaruzzaman's filing of an independent review of his death sentence to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on 5 March 2015, the statement alleges that "without hearing the application on its merits, the Supreme Court summarily rejected his petition." 

It also points out that "the UN opposes the use of the death penalty, even in cases where stringent fair trial standards appear to have been met and even for the most serious international crimes."

The statement also urges the Bangladesh government to "join the growing number of States that have abolished this inhuman practice."