SC set to hear review petition today

Convicted war criminal Mir Quasem Ali yesterday again appealed to defer, this time for three weeks, the Supreme Court hearing scheduled to begin today of his June 19 petition seeking review of its verdict upholding death penalty for him.

Khandker Mahbub Hossain told The Daily Star that the adjournment petition might be heard today.

He explained that he could not prepare arguments as assistant lawyer and Quasem's son, Barrister Mir Ahmmad Bin Quasem, who had the case's records and documents, had “disappeared”.

The previous deferment petition on July 24 sought two months for Khandker's preparations. The next day, the Appellate Division granted one month, fixing today's date.

In the review petition, the 63-year-old Jamaat-e-Islami leader sought acquittal on all seven charges he was found guilty on.

On November 2, 2014, International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-2 handed down the capital punishment over crimes against humanity committed during the 1971 Liberation War.

The Appellate Division upheld the verdict on March 8 this year and released the full text on June 6, hours after which ICT issued a death warrant.

Meanwhile, some United Nations human rights experts urged the government to annul the death sentence and retry Quasem in compliance with international standards, reports our diplomatic correspondent.

“Ali's trial and appeal processes were reportedly marred with irregularities and failed to meet international standards on fair trial…,” claimed the experts on extrajudicial executions, judiciary's independence, torture, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances in a statement issued in Geneva.

The experts are Agnes Callamard, Mónica Pinto, Juan E Méndez, Sètondji Roland Adjovi, and the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances.