Verdict on Feb 16
A Dhaka tribunal yesterday fixed February 16 for delivery of judgment against six members of banned militant outfit Ansar-al-Islam in a case filed over the killing of blogger and writer Avijit Roy in February 2015.
After conclusion of arguments, Judge Md Majibur Rahman of the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal of Dhaka set the date, Assistant Public Prosecutor Golam Sharuar Khan told The Daily Star.
During yesterday's closing arguments, the prosecution told the tribunal that they were able to prove the charges against all the accused and sought capital punishment for them.
The six accused are Sayed Mohammad Ziaul Haque alias Maj (sacked) Zia, Akram Hossain Abir, Mozammel Hossain Saymon, Abu Siddiq Sohel, Arafat Rahman Siam and Shafiur Rahman Farabi.
Of them, Zia and Akram are on the run while the rest are in jail.
Earlier, 28 prosecution witnesses, including Avijit's father Prof Ajoy Roy, who passed away on December 9, 2019, gave depositions before the tribunal.
On February 26, 2015, Avijit, a US-based Bangladeshi blogger, was stabbed to death on the Dhaka University campus while he, along with his wife Rafida Ahmed Bonya, was returning from Ekushey book fair. Bonya survived the attack.
Prof Ajoy filed the murder case accusing unidentified assailants with Shahbagh Police Station the next day.
Inspector Muhammad Monirul Islam of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime unit of police submitted the charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Dhaka on March 11, 2019.
On August 1 that year, the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal of Dhaka framed charges against the six accused.
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