Defence witness counters nephew's statement against Sayedee

Dhaka, Sep 5  A defence witness for Jamaat-e-Islami leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee countered his nephew's testimony who had appeared as a prosecution witness and said on Wednesday collaborators never attacked his native village of Nalbunia.

Appearing as the second witness for Sayedee, 68-year Abdul Razzak Akhand said his nephew Abdul Halim Babul's claim that Sayedee had led a band of Razakars, collaborators of the Pakistani Army, to loot and arson at his village was false.

Babul had testified at the tribunal in January earlier this year and said he was 55 years old although his uncle Akhand said he was barely eight years during the war, which makes him 48 now.

He told the first war crimes tribunal of Bangladesh, "Razakars never came to your village, nor did Pakistani troops. Neither were there any such incidents of loot, arson or pillage during the Liberation War."

The three-judge International Crimes Tribunal – 1, set up to try crimes against humanity during the 1971 War of Independence, indicted Sayedee on 20 counts of war crimes on Oct 3, 2011.

On Wednesday, Akhand said, referring to his nephew, "Babul was only eight at that time."

Babul's mother is Akhand's eldest sister, Shafia Khatun, who had married their neighbour. Thus the witness claimed to know what had happened to his next door neighbour in the same village.

However, when asked, Akhand said his sister was over 85 years of age. When asked, "Is Babul the eldest of your nephews?"

The witness replied, "Yes, among those living."

Akhand explained that Shafia had four children before Babul. Replying to another question the witness said, Babul has two younger brothers, Bahadur and Modhu. When asked how old they were Akhand said Bahadur was not yet 40 and Modhu was about 35.

The prosecutor then asked a few other questions and returned to the topic asking the witness, "So where were Bahadur and Modhu during the war?"

"They were at home," the witness promptly replied.

Through the cross-examination of the witness, prosecution repeatedly complained that the defence counsels were prompting answers.

At one point the tribunal presided by Justice Jahangir Hossain, with the chairman Justice Mohammad Nizamul Huq absent, told the witness to face away from the defence counsels and face the judges.

Generally the witnesses are seated in front of the judges to their right close enough to the defence benches for the witness to hear hushed murmurs.

First case to trial

Sayedee's is the first case to proceed to the trial stage at the war crimes tribunals. The prosecution on Sep 4, 2011 proposed framing of charges against him on 31 counts of crimes against humanity and genocide.

The tribunal also sent Jamaat's former chief Ghulam Azam to jail on Jan 11. His indictment hearing began on Feb 15 and the court charged him on May 13.

Jamaat chief Matiur Rahman Nizami, Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujaheed and assistant secretaries general Mohammad Kamaruzzaman and Abdul Quader Molla are also behind bars on war crimes charges. Jamaat financier Mir Quasem Ali has been recently arrested for war crimes charges too as investigation continues into allegations against him. ATM Azharul Islam, the acting secretary was arrested on Wednesday and his bail application remains pending till Sunday.

BNP MP and standing committee member, Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, also behind bars, was indicted for 23 charges on Apr 4.

Former BNP lawmaker and minister Abdul Alim is the only one out on bail. All cases have already entered the trial phase.