The trial of war crimes accused AKM Yusuf enters the final stage on February 12 as the International Crimes Tribunal-2 yesterday fixed the day for beginning of the closing arguments.
The three-member tribunal led by Justice Obaidul Hassan with members Justice Md Mozibur Rahman Miah and Justice Md Shahinur Islam set the date after completing recording of the testimony and cross-examination of the lone defence witness in the case.
The tribunal on January 30 completed recording of the testimony of 27 prosecution witnesses including the investigation officer and allowed three defence witnesses to defend Yusuf.
The defence however decided not to produce further witnesses after AKM Mahbubur Rahman, elder son of Yusuf, gave testimony as the first defence witness yesterday.
After hearing the closing arguments from both the prosecution and the defence, the tribunal will either keep the case waiting for verdict or fix a date to that end.
Yusuf, historically known as the founder of infamous Razakar force and nayeb-e-ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, is facing 13 charges of genocide and crimes against humanity committed in greater Khulna during the Liberation War in 1971.
Of the charges against the 87-year-old accused, the then deputy chief of Jamaat, which vehemently opposed the birth of Bangladesh, seven are for genocide, which left several hundred people dead in Khulna and Bagerhat.
During his 40-minute testimony, Mahbubur said his father was “not involved” in any such crimes and the charges brought against him were “totally false and baseless”.
The 54-year-old witness said he along with his other family members used to live in Khulna town until mid-September in 1971 when his father had become a member of the Malek cabinet.
He added they had lived in a government residence on Minto Road in Dhaka until December 14 when the Malek government stepped down and they had taken shelter at the then Hotel Intercontinental, which was declared as a neutral zone by the Red Cross.
Mahbubur said five to six days into the Victory on December 16, the Red Cross had handed them including his father to the “Indian army” and they stayed at Dhaka Cantonment for around one and a half months.
His father was then handed over to the Bangladesh government, said Mahbubur, adding that a case was filed against Yusuf under the Collaborator Act, 1972 and his father was awarded life sentence in that case.
Mahbubur further said his father was released in December 1973 after Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared general amnesty, as Yusuf was not accused of committing killing, genocide, looting or arson.
Killing, genocide, looting and arson were out of the purview of the general amnesty.
“It's true that my father was supporter of undivided Pakistan, but he was not involved in any such crimes,” said Mahbubur, adding, “After 40 years of independence, several cases were filed against my father since 2009 only for political reasons.”
“During the Liberation War in 1971, my father never has gone to any place under Bagerhat sub-division… while he was a minister, he had gone everywhere under government protocol. The charges brought against my father are totally false and baseless,” he claimed.
During cross-examination Mahbubur however said his father had contested the by-polls of Pakistan national assembly in 1971 from Khulna-2 constituency, which was constituted with Bagerhat sub-division and some parts of Barisal district.
As prosecutor Syed Haider Ali asked him about the result, Mahbubur said he didn't know if he had won or lost the polls.
In reply to a question of the tribunal, the witness said they had hailed from Rajair village in Sarankhola, Bagerhat.