War criminal Azhar files review plea on death penalty
Court
A petition has been filed at the Appellate Division seeking a review of the death penalty and acquittal of Jamaat leader ATM Azharul Islam in a 1971 war crimes case.
Azhar's lawyer Mohammad Shishir Monir filed the petition at the relevant branch of the Appellate Division on Sunday afternoon.
Shishir Monir said, "The 23-page review petition gives 14 arguments for acquittal. The chief justice will set a date for the hearing."
On March 25, the Appellate Division issued a full verdict upholding the death sentence on Azharul Islam for crimes against humanity.
Defendants in crimes against humanity cases have 15 days to seek a review after the verdict is announced. But Azhar has not been able to review so far as the regular court closed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
On October 31 last year, the Supreme Court's Appellate Division upheld the death sentence through a four-judge appellate bench headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud.
Azhar was sentenced to death on December 30, 2014 by the International Criminal Tribunal for murder, abduction, torture, rape and other crimes against humanity during the war of liberation.
The death sentence was upheld on the basis of the opinion of the majority of the judges in the judgment of the Appellate Division.
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