A Dhaka court has sentenced eight people, all members of banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team, to death over the murder of Jagriti Prokashoni publisher Foysal Arefin Dipon.
Judge of Dhaka Anti-Terrorism Tribunal Md Mojibur Rahman delivered the verdict on Wednesday.
The convicts were also fined 50,000 taka each in today’s judgment.
On October 13, 2019, the tribunal framed charges against eight members of banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) in the case.
The eight ABT men are Moinul Hasan Shamim alias Sifat alias Samir alias Imran, Md Abdus Sabur alias Abdus Samad alias Sujan alias Raju alias Sad, Khairul Islam alias Jamil alias Rifat alias Fahim alias Jisan, Md Abu Siddique Sohel alias Sakib alias Sajid alias Shahab, Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon alias Shashriar, Md Sheikh Abdullah alias Jubayer alias Jayed alias Javed, Syed Ziaul Hoque, a suspended major of Bangladesh Army who is known as Sagar alias Istikhakh alias Borobhai, and Akram Hossain alias Hasib alias Abir alias Adnan alias Abdullah.
The court also issued arrest warrants against ex-Major Ziaul and Akram as they are on the run.
Major Syed Ziaul Hoque, the mastermind of the killing, was suspended from the Bangladesh Army.
On October 30, 2018, the charge-sheet in the case was sent to the Home Ministry for approval before submission to the court as the case was filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act.
Publisher Dipon, son of Prof Abul Kashem Fazlul Huq of Dhaka University, was hacked to death in his office on the second floor of Aziz Supermarket at Shahbagh in the city on October 31, 2015.
A case was filed with Shahbagh Police Station the following day and later the case was transferred to Detective Branch.
Police on November 15, 2019, pressed charges against the eight ABT men in the case.
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