Nizami, Babar taken to Kashimpur jail
Former ministers Motiur Rahman Nizami and Lutfozzaman Babar -- the death row convicts in 10-truck arms haul case -- have been taken to Kashimpur jail from Chittagong.
Two other condemned convicts -- former director of Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) Maj Gen (retd) Rezzakul Haider Chowdhury and ex-director general of National Security Intelligence (NSI) Brig Gen (retd) Abdur Rahim – are on way to Dhaka Central Jail from the port city.
A prison van carrying Nizami, chief of Jamaat-e-Islami, and Babar, former state minister for home, reached Kashimpur jail gate around 7:15pm, said Abdur Razzak, jail super of the prison.
They have been kept in condemned cells in the prison, the jail official told our Gazipur correspondent.
The shifting was made as the four were accused in other cases whose trials are going on, Sagir Mia, senior jail super in Chittagong Central Jail, told The Daily Star.
Babar, Chowdhury and Rahim were accused in August 21 grenade attack case. The hearing on the case is due on February 4.
On the other hand, war crimes case against Nizami, also the Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, remains pending at the International Crimes Tribunal-1.
A Chittagong court on Thursday handed down death penalty to 14 people, including Nizami, Babar, Chowdhury and Rahim for smuggling 10 truckloads of arms into the port city during the last BNP-led government's tenure in 2004.
A prison van carrying the four convicts and escorted by two police van left Chittagong jail around 10:45am today, said the jail super.
The four, now in prison uniform, were in the condemn cell of the Chittagong jail.
The transfer was made on security ground as the Akheri Munajat (final prayer) of the second phase of three-day long Biswa Ijtema will take place tomorrow followed by a countrywide daylong hartal of Jamaat on Monday, he added.
Jamaat called the shutdown for Thursday protesting death penalty of Nizami in the arms haul case.
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