Case Against Sayedee: Then would-be witness accuses Hasina, others of torture

Sukhranjan Bali, who was listed as a prosecution witness in the crimes against humanity case against Delawar Hossain Sayedee, has accused ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 31 others of trying to force him to make a false statement.

In a complaint he filed with the office of the International Crimes Tribunal's chief prosecutor yesterday, Bali alleged he had been abducted, tortured and held captive in India for his refusal to make "false testimony" against Jamaat-e-Islami leader Sayedee.

He also alleged he was picked up by law enforcers while on his way to testify that Sayedee "was innocent".

The accused in the complaint include former chief justice Surendra Kumar Sinha, former ICT chairman Justice Nizamul Huq, ex-law minister Shafique Ahmed, and former state minister for law Qamrul Islam.

Former ICT judge justice ATM Fazle Kabir, former ICT investigator Helal Uddin, former ICT chief prosecutor Syed Haider Ali, ex-prosecutor Rana Dasgupta, former chief of the ICT investigation agency Md Sanaul Haque, and former Pirojpur lawmaker AKM Awal alias Saidur Rahman.

The others are 10 to 15 then leaders and activists of Priojpur district Awami League, Jubo League and Chhatra League, listed as unidentified accused.

In the complaint, Bali claimed that in July-August 2010, ICT investigator Helal interrogated him at a local school regarding the killing of his brother Bisha Bali during the 1971 Liberation War.

"I told him the truth, but Helal tried to force me to name Sayedee along with the real killers and give testimony against Sayedee before the tribunal.

"When I refused, saying Sayedee was in no way involved in the murder of my brother, he started physically assaulting me to give false testimony," Bali wrote.

He alleged that Helal, along with local Awami League leaders including former MP Awal and former Pirojpur mayor Habibur Rahman Malek, repeatedly threatened and beat him for declining to give false testimony.

"They warned me that if I didn't agree to testify as instructed, the next day would be my last," the complaint read. Bali said he went into hiding for months to save his life.

Later, he said, Sayedee's son Masud Sayedee approached him and requested him to testify in favour of Sayedee to reveal the truth. "I agreed and came to Dhaka on November 3, 2012 and contacted Masud Sayedee," Bali said.

On November 5, while being taken to the tribunal by defence counsel Mizanul Islam in his car, Bali alleged he was intercepted near the ICT gate by plainclothesmen and police officers. "They dragged me out of the car, beat me, blindfolded me, and took me away in a white pickup," he wrote.

He alleged he was held in a dark room for nearly two months and subjected to severe physical and psychological torture, including electric shocks to his private parts to force him to give statement against Sayedee.

Bali further alleged that his captors offered him "crores of taka and a house" in exchange for the false statement.

When he refused, they allegedly continued the torture until he fell unconscious. He was treated in hospitals at times but after recovery, he was always taken back to confinement and tortured, he added.

Bali alleged that after months of abuse, he was handed over to members of India's Border Security Force (BSF) illegally. BSF also tortured him severely and took him to a sub-jail in Basirhat where he was kept for 22 days, according to the complaint. It added that Bali  was shifted to Dumdum Central Jail where he was kept in captivity for about five years.

Bali has described his alleged ordeal as a "crime against humanity" and demanded accountability and punishment for all those he accused.