The jail authorities read out the death warrant to condemned war crimes convict Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Quasem Ali at Kashimpur Central Jail on Tuesday morning. Prasanta Kumar Banik, jail super of the central jail part-2, entered the condemned cell-50 of the jail, where Quasem has been kept, around 7am with a copy of the death warrant and read out it to him.
Meanwhile, the jail authorities said Mir Quasem will file a review petition against the Supreme Court verdict that upheld the death penalty of the Jamaat leader.According to the rules, the defence will get 15 days for deciding to file the review. In this case, Quasem will get time till June 22. Gazipur, UNB News Agency Reported.
Earlier on Monday, the International Crimes Tribunal issued the death warrant for the Jamaat-e-Islami leader hours after the Supreme Court released the full text of its verdict upholding his death penalty.On Monday, the death warrant for Mir Quasem Ali reached the Dhaka Central Jail.
The copy of the 244-page full verdict was released after singing of all five members of the Appellate Division bench, headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha.The SC has so far released the full texts of its verdicts against seven war crimes convicts.
Earlier on March 8, the Appellate Division upheld the death penalty for Mir Quasem Ali for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War.A five-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha, came up with the verdict, after allowing in part the appeal filed by the Jamaat leader challenging the tribunal’s death sentence.
The other members of the bench were Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique, Justice Mirza Hussain Haider and Justice Mohammad Bazlur Rahman. On February 24, after concluding the hearing, the apex court had fixed March 8 for pronouncement of its verdict on the appeal filed by Mir Quasem Ali against the death sentence.
The International Crimes Tribunal-2 in a verdict had sentenced Mir Quasem Ali, Al-Badr chief in the port city of Chittagong in 1971, to death on November 2, 2014. On November 30, 2014, Mir Quasem filed an appeal before the Supreme Court challenging the death penalty.
Among the total 14 charges brought against Mir Quasem for war crimes, the tribunal convicted him on 10 charges and acquitted him from four.The Appellate Division started hearing the appeal on February 9, 2016.Top Jamaat-e-Islami financier Quasem, now 64, was president of the Chittagong town unit of the Islami Chhatra Sangha, student wing of Jamaat, till November 6, 1971.
He was then made general secretary of the East Pakistan Chhatra Sangha.
