Death sentences of 2 upheld
The High Court has delivered its verdict on the death references, appeals, and jail appeals filed by the accused in the much-discussed murder case of madrasa student Nusrat Jahan Rafi in Feni.
In the verdict, the High Court upheld the death sentences of 2, of the 16 accused who had previously been sentenced to death.
Besides, it has reduced the sentences of 4 to life imprisonment, and acquitted 10.
A High Court bench comprising Justice Bhishmadev Chakraborty and Justice K. M. Rasheduzzaman Raja delivered the verdict on Monday ( 24August ), in the widely discussed case. The court began reading out the judgment at 10:40 a.m.
The two whose death sentences were upheld are S. M. Siraj-ud-Daula, the former principal of Sonagazi Islamia Senior Fazil Madrasa, and Shahadat Hossain Shamim.
The sentences of four accused were reduced to life imprisonment. They are Saifur Rahman Zubayer, Umme Sultana Popy, Nur Uddin, and Sakhawat Hossain Javed.
The 10 acquitted accused are Maksud Alam, also known as Moksud Councillor, former general secretary of Sonagazi municipal unit of the Awami League; Hafez Abdul Kader; Absar Uddin; Kamrunnahar Moni; Abdur Rahim Sharif; Iftekhar Uddin Rana; Imran Hossain, also known as Mamun; Ruhul Amin, president of Sonagazi upazila Awami League and former vice-president of the madrasa; Mohiuddin Shakil; and Mohammad Shamim.
The accused were represented in court by lawyers Mohammad Shishir Monir, S. M. Shahjahan, and Barrister Masud Hossain Dolon. The state was represented by Attorney General Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal and Deputy Attorney General Syed Ejaz Kabir.
According to the case records, the documents relating to the death sentences of all 16 accused were sent to the High Court for approval on October 29, 2019. The printing of the case paper book was subsequently completed on a priority basis. After the necessary procedures were completed, the case was placed before the Chief Justice, who assigned it to this bench for hearing.
Under the Code of Criminal Procedure, when a trial court sentences an accused person to death, all case records must be sent to the High Court for confirmation of the sentence. Accordingly, the death reference in this case was sent to the High Court. The convicted accused also filed jail appeals and criminal appeals.
On October 24, 2019, Judge Mamunur Rashid of the Feni Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal announced the verdict in the Nusrat murder case. The court sentenced all 16 accused to death and fined each of them Tk 100,000.
The trial process was completed very quickly. After charges were framed, the testimony of 87 witnesses and the arguments were completed in only 61 working days.
On March 27, 2019, Nusrat’s mother, Shirin Akhter, filed a case against S. M. Siraj-ud-Daula, the principal of Sonagazi Islamia Fazil Madrasa, accusing him of sexual harassment. Police subsequently arrested the principal.
The principal’s followers carried out various activities to try to secure his release from prison and put pressure on Nusrat. On April 3, several of the accused visited Siraj-ud-Daula in prison and discussed the matter with him. The following day, April 4, a plan was made to kill Nusrat in the madrasa dormitory.
According to the plan, when Nusrat went to the madrasa to sit for her Alim examination on April 6, she was taken to the roof of the cyclone shelter. There, the attackers set fire to her body in an attempt to kill her.
Nusrat, who had suffered severe burns, was initially taken to Sonagazi Upazila Health Complex. She was later transferred to Feni 250-Bed General Hospital. As her condition deteriorated, she was brought to Dhaka and admitted to the Burn Unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Nusrat died while undergoing treatment on April 10.
On April 8, Nusrat’s brother Mahmudul Hasan Noman filed a murder case in connection with the incident. The charge sheet was submitted on May 28. Subsequently, on June 20, the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal framed charges against the accused.
After the completion of witness testimony and arguments, the court on September 30 set October 24 as the date for delivering the verdict. On that scheduled date, all 16 accused were sentenced to death.