A court in Dhaka awarded death to 152 including Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) deputy assistant director Towhidul Islam and life-term to 160 including former BNP lawmaker Nasiruddin Ahmed Pintu and ward-level Awami League leader Torab Ali for their role in the February 2009 carnage at then BDR headquarters.

Earlier this morning, 813 people detained in the mutiny case were produced before the makeshift court at Bakshibazar in the capital.

Besides, the 10 more accused who are on bail also appeared before the Court of Third Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s, Dhaka.

Three others accused – Zohora Khatun, Abdus Salam and Runa Akhtar Bithi – who had also granted bail in the case could not appear before the court due to the ongoing 60-hour strike of the BNP-led 18-party opposition combine.

Several contingents of security men guarded the detained accused including BNP leader Nasiruddin Ahmed Pintu to the court around 10:00 in the morning.

Judge Md Akhtaruzzaman started reading out the verdict around 12:30pm.

Security has been beefed up on the court premises and its adjacent areas following the pronouncement of the verdict.

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Director General Major General Aziz Ahmed and nearly 20 persons from the victim army officials’ family came to the court to attend today’s trial.

In the February 2009 mutiny, 74 people including 57 top and mid-ranking army officers were killed by the rebel BDR personnel.

The border guard members also looted arms and ammunition from armouries during the 33-hour bloodbath at the Pilkhana headquarters of the erstwhile BDR (now Border Guard Bangladesh, BGB,) on February 25-26.

The killers later dumped the victims’ bodies in sewers and shallow graves, looted officers’ houses and held their family members hostage at gunpoint.

A total of 850 people including 823 BDR jawans and 23 civilians were accused in the case.

Among the accused are BNP leader Pintu, city ward unit Awami League leader Torab Ali and the then BDR deputy assistant director Mohammad Towhidul Islam.

Of the accused, 813 are detained, 13 are on bail, 20 are on the run while four have died in custody.

Earlier, the verdict was scheduled to be delivered on October 30.

Judge Md Akhtaruzzaman deferred the date today for delivery of the verdict as he required some more time to prepare the judgement after reading around 10,000 pages containing depositions of 654 witnesses and their cross-examinations.

By arrangment with the The Daily Star/ANN