Jail Killing Day
| Jail Killing Day | |
|---|---|
| Location | Dhaka Central Jail, Dhaka, Bangladesh. |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | 4 |
Jail Killing Day (Bengali: জেল হত্যা দিবস) is observed by the Awami League (AL) of Bangladesh and many other political organization on November 3 each year. It commemorates the killing of four Awami League and national leaders: former Vice President Syed Nazrul Islam, former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Tajuddin Ahmed and Captain (Rtd.) Mansur Ali, and former Home Minister A H M Quamruzzaman on this date in 1975.[1][2]
History
Sheikh Mujib was killed in military coup. The coup leaders were overthrown in a counter coup by Brigadier Khaled Musharraf. The assassins were to be sent into exile but before they left they decided to execute the four leaders imprisoned in Dhaka Central jail.[3] Vice President Syed Nazrul Islam, former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Tajuddin Ahmed and Captain (Rtd.) Mansur Ali, and former Home Minister A H M Quamruzzaman were shot and bayoneted by army officials inside Dhaka Central Jail.[4][5] Those killers, later, got indirect benefits from two President of Bangladesh Ziaur Rahman and Hossain Mohammad Ershad.
Victims
- Syed Nazrul Islam- was the vice president and acting president of Mujibnagar Government, the first government of Bangladesh. He was the former vice-chairman of BAKSAL.[6]
- Tajuddin Ahmed- was a lawyer, politician and the first Prime Minister of Bangladesh. He was a former finance minister and a member of parliament.[7]
- Abul Hasnat Muhammad Qamaruzzaman- was a member of parliament, he was elected president of Awami League in 1974. He was the Minister of Relief and Rehabilitation in the Mujibnagar government.[8]
- Muhammad Mansur Ali- was the Finance minister of Mujibnagar government. He was the Prime Minister of Bangladesh in the Baksal government.[9]
Trial
Nearly 29 years after the killings, those responsible went to trial. In the judgement, which was pronounced on October 20, 2004, during the premiership of Begum Khaleda Zia, three fugitive former army personnel were sentenced to death, 12 former army personnel were sentenced to life term imprisonment and five people, including four senior politicians, like Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders A KM Obaidur Rahman, Shah Moazzem Hossain, Nurul Islam Monzoor, Taheruddin Thakur and the then additional foreign secretary Khairuzzaman, were acquitted.[2]
On August 28, 2008, the High Court division of Supreme Court of Bangladesh acquitted six former military men of the Jail Killing Case. Those who were found not guilty of the crime include Syed Faruque Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Bazlul Huda and A K M Mohiuddin Ahmed, all these men were executed in 2009 for their involvement in Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. This acquittal is being appealed to the Appellate Division of Supreme Court of Bangladesh by the prosecution.[10]
The individuals who received capital punishment included[11][12]
- Lieutenant Colonel (Rtd.) Syed Faruque Rahman (appeals exhausted)
- Lieutenant Colonel (Rtd.) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan (appeals exhausted)
- Major (Rtd.) Mohammad Bazlul Huda (appeals exhausted)
- Major (Rtd.) A.K.M. Mohiuddin Ahmed (appeals exhausted)
- Lieutenant Colonel (Rtd.) Khondakar Abdur Rashid (absconded, now living in Libya and Pakistan)
- Lieutenant Colonel (Rtd.) Shariful Haque Dalim (absconded, now living in Canada)
- Lt. Col. S.H.M.B Noor Chowdhury (absconded, now living in Canada)
- Lt. Col. Rashed Chowdhury (retired) (absconded, now living in Canada)
- Major Ahmed Sharaful Hossain (retired) (absconded)
- Captain Abdul Majid (retired) (absconded)
- Captain (Rtd.) Mohammad Kismat Hashem (absconded, now living in Canada)
- Captain (Rtd.) Nazmul Hossain Ansari (absconded, now living in Canada)
- Risalder (retd) Muslemuddin
- Dafadar (dismissed) Marfat Ali Shah
- Dafadar (dismissed) Abdul Hashem Mridha
Reactions
- The Daily Star described the incident as "very tragic and very shameful".[13]
References
- ↑ "Jail Killing Day observed | Dhaka Tribune". archive.dhakatribune.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- 1 2 "Historic jail killing day | Dhaka Tribune". archive.dhakatribune.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Jail Killing Day today". The Daily Star. 2011-11-03. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Remembering the four national leaders on Jail Killing Day". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Death convicts stay safe abroad". The Daily Star. 2015-11-03. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Islam, Syed Nazrul - Banglapedia". en.banglapedia.org. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Ahmad, Tajuddin - Banglapedia". en.banglapedia.org. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Qamaruzzaman, Abul Hasnat Mohammad - Banglapedia". en.banglapedia.org. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Ali, Captain M Mansur - Banglapedia". en.banglapedia.org. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Jail Killing Day". The Daily Star. The Daily Star. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
- ↑ "Bangladesh executes Mujib killers". BBC. 27 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-28.
- ↑ "Historic jail killing day | Dhaka Tribune". archive.dhakatribune.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Jail Killing Day". The Daily Star. 2011-11-03. Retrieved 2016-10-10.