Jail Killing Day today
The nation is set to observe Jail Killing Day today with due solemnity.
On November 3, 1975, four national leaders and heroes of the country’s liberation war — Syed Nazrul Islam, Tajuddin Ahmad, Captain Mansur Ali and AHM Quamruzzaman — were assassinated inside Dhaka Central Jail.
The four leaders played a key role in forming the Mujibnagar government in exile, which led to the war of independence in 1971, with Syed Nazrul Islam as the acting president, Tajuddin Ahmad as the prime minister, Mansur Ali as the finance minister, and AHM Qamruzzaman as the home, relief, and rehabilitation minister.
There was no decision, however, on the demand of former state minister for home Tanjim Ahmad Sohel Taj, son of Tajuddin Ahmad, about marking the day as a state day.
Sohel Taj on Monday submitted a memorandum to the speaker of the parliament, making three demands, including marking Jail Killing Day as a state day.
The ruling Awami League, its associate organisations and other political parties have planned elaborate programmes to mark the day.
The programmes include hoisting the national flag and the party flag at half-mast, hoisting black flags, wearing black badges, and offering fateha at the graves of the four leaders at Banani Graveyard.
Besides, the AL will arrange a discussion at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka at 3:00pm.
AL general secretary and road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader urged all party leaders and the people across the country to observe the day.
Meanwhile, president Md Abdul Hamid and prime minister Sheikh Hasina have issued separate messages on the occasion.
In his message, president Abdul Hamid said, ‘When Bangabandhu was imprisoned in Pakistan jail during the Liberation War, the president said in absence of Bangabandhu the four national leaders made an outstanding contribution in forming the Mujibnagar Government, devising war strategy and tactics, carrying out administrative activities, conducting the Liberation War, carrying on diplomatic efforts and keeping an eye on refugees to turn the Liberation War into a people’s war in 1971.’
He said that the nation would always remember the contributions of the four national leaders with due respect.
PM Hasina, in her message, said, ‘The purpose of the killers was to break the state structure of the non-communal democratic Bangladesh and undermine our independence achieved at a huge cost.’
The anti-liberation forces started the politics of killing, coup, and conspiracy after August 15 in 1975 and proclaimed an indemnity ordinance to save the self-confessed killers, Hasina said.
After the Awami League assumed power in 1996, the government initiated a trial against the accused of the assassination by revoking an indemnity law that was protecting the accused.
On October 20, 2004, after a protracted trial, the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court declared 15 of the 20 accused, guilty and released the other five. All 20 accused were former military officers.
Of the 15 convicted, three fugitives were given the death penalty and 12 were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The three sentenced to death were Sergeant Moslem Uddin, Sentry Marfot Ali Shah, and Sentry Mohammad Abul Hashem Mridha.
On August 28, 2008, a High Court acquitted six of the accused. The court released two, who were earlier given death sentences — Sentry Marfot Ali Shah and Sentry Mohammad Abul Hashem Mridha — and four others who were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The four released included retired Lieutenant Colonel Syed Faruqe Rahman, retired Lieutenant Colonel Shahriar Rashid Khan, retired Major Bazlul Huda, and retired Lieutenant Colonel AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed.
However, the four were convicted in the Sheikh Mujibur Rahman assassination case and executed on January 27, 2010.
In 2012, the Jail Killing case was reopened under the appellate division.
On April 30, 2013, the court dismissed the 2008 verdict given by the High Court and instead upheld the 2004 judgment that convicted the 15 accused.