As a special court yesterday resumed trial of 623 accused from 13 Rifle Battalion, the prosecutor told the court that the bloody mutiny at BDR Headquarters began from this battalion.
He said sepoy Moin, one of the key planners of the mutiny, who first attempted to kill the then BDR director general during Darbar on February 25 last year, was from this battalion.
Moin has been absconding since then.
Prosecutor Lt Col Akhter Hamid Khan, who is also commanding officer of 13 Rifle Battalion, was placing charges against the accused before the court set up at the Darbar Hall in Pilkhana.
If the jawans of this battalion would not assist sepoy Moin, the BDR officers did not have to lay down their lives, he said.
After Lt Col Hamid's deposition the court started reading out specific charges against each of the accused.
"You were found coordinating soldiers in burying officers at a mass grave in Pilkhana at the night of February 25 last year," the court heard prime accused of the case Subedar Major Sheikh Zobayer Hossain.
The court read out other charges against Zobayer that included directing jawans by blowing whistle to take up arms and ammunition, take part in the mutiny and leave the Darbar Hall ignoring the slain DG's directive.
A bearded Zobayer listened to the charges standing straight on the front row on the dock with seemingly no anxiety in his face.
The prosecutor in a briefing later said Zobayer was found giving instructions to some jawans, who were burying the bodies of slain officers at a mass grave at the vegetable garden of 13 Rifle Battalion.
Bodies of 10 officers including that of the then DG Maj Gen Shakil Ahmed were recovered from that mass grave.
"We've a witness who will narrate later before the court about the activities of the prime accused," Lt Col Hamid told The Daily Star.
The Special Court-8 relieved one of the accused who died of cancer on August 5. Now the number of accused stands at 622 who all were brought before the court during yesterday's proceedings.
The three-member court headed by BDR Deputy DG Brig Gen Obaidul Haque completed charge framing hearing against 100 accused yesterday and adjourned the proceedings till 10:00am today.
"Nayek Subedar Abdul Matin Mian, you did not try to restrain jawans from taking part in the mutiny. Rather you blew whistle and told them 'Mamur byatara [sons of maternal uncles] go to magazine, take up arms and ammunition and participate in the mutiny'," this was one of several charges the court read out to the number 2 accused.
In the February 25-26 mutiny last year, 74 people including 57 army officers were killed.