Sayedee’s lawyers submitted the appeal to the Supreme Court with Zainul Abedin Tuhin shown as advocate on record.
“We have challenged the verdict on 135 grounds and sought acquittal on all the eight charges for which he was given death penalty,” Sayedee’s lawyer Fariduddin Khan told bdnews24.com.
He said the appeal and its supporting documentation runs into 6500 pages.
The first war crimes tribunal headed by Justice ATM Fazle Kabir handed down death penalty to Delwar Hossain Sayedee on Feb 28.
Justice Kabir said that eight of the 20 charges of crimes against humanity against Sayedee have been proved conclusively. Two of these charges pertained to killings.
The tribunal ordered Sayedee to be hanged until death. The tribunal in its order said the prosecution had successfully established the fact that Sayedee was a Razakar leader at Pirozpur during the 1971 liberation war.
Following the appeal, ICT prosecution team coordinator MK Rahman told bdnews24.com Sayedee had been awarded death penalty on two counts of murders but no verdict was issued on the six other charges that were proven against him.
“Sayedee is not being given punishment even though the charges against him were proven so convincingly… It is nothing but a loophole of the law and this is definitely discouraging justice,” he said. “We have demanded his punishment for those six charges too.”
He said there was sufficient evidence to prove his complicity in the 12 other charges but he was let off on those.
He said prosecution appealed on those charges too for ‘complete justice’.
Jamaat-e-Islami leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee, now a convicted war criminal, was sentenced to death for two charges of murder.
Out of 20 charges levelled against the two-time former MP, he was acquitted in 12, including genocide. The court said that the prosecution had failed to prove them beyond a shadow of doubt.
Sayedee was found guilty in eight charges including two for murder and persecution.
These were the eighth and tenth charges. Sayedee was accused of murder of Ibrahim Kutti, abduction and persecution in the eighth charge.
The indictment order said on May 8, 1971 around 3pm Sayedee, his accomplices and Pakistani troops raided the house of Manik Posari of Chitholia village. They set fire to five houses at Sayedee's instance.
The band of men caught Manik's brother Mafizuddin and one Ibrahim Kutti from there. On their way back Sayedee is said to have instigated Pakistani soldiers to kill Ibrahim Kutti.
Kutti was then shot dead and his body dumped into the river. Mafiz was taken to an army camp and tortured.
Thereafter, Sayedee and others set fire to Hindu houses at Parerhat causing huge devastation.
The judgement notes that Mafizuddin Poshari, caught along with Kutti and taken to the local Razakar camp and tortured, luckily escaped from there alive. Mafiz was deposed at the tribunal as the seventh prosecution witness.
"He (Mafiz) categorically testified that [Sayedee] as a member of Razakar Bahini caught them at the crime site and ultimately Ibrahim was killed by Pak Army."
The tribunal continued, "We find no reason to disbelieve evidence of [Mafiz] as to murder of Kutti and destruction of houses of civilians on a large scale by setting fire which constitute crimes against humanity."
Jamaat's chief defence counsel Abdur Razzaq said regarding the charge that Kutti's wife had not accused Sayedee but other people when she filed a murder case in 1973.
The court, however, said the related documents produced before the court by the defence had to be proven to be authentic.
Razzaq told bdnews24.com that Sayedee could not even have been held responsible for the case. "Let alone murder."
The other murder charge has Sayedee, Razakars and Pak Army troops raid a Hindu community of Umedpur village on Jun 6, 1971 around 10am. They burnt 25 houses, including Bishabali's.
At one stage Bishabali was tied to a coconut tree and at Sayedee's insistence shot dead by an accomplice.
The judgement states after critical analysis of the three witness testimonies, "It is evident that one civilian named Bishabali was caught and tortured by Razakars, thereafter victim Bishabali was fastened to a coconut tree and he was shot dead by a Razakar at the insistence of accused Delwar Hossain Sayedee."
The verdict states that prosecution witnesses Mahtabuddin Howladar and Altab Hossain Howladar "have proved the occurrence of burning dwelling houses of unarmed civilians…as well as killing of Bishabali at the insistence of the accused as eyewitness of the occurrence."
The verdict then states, "It is well proved that the accused was involved with the commission of murder and persecution within the purview of crimes against humanity."
Tribunal Chairman Justice A T M Fazle Kabir reading out the last part of the 58-page summary said the judges had considered the seriousness of Sayedee's offences.
"In consideration of the gravity and magnitude of the offences committed particularly in [charges] 8 and 10, we unanimously hold that the accused deserves the highest punishment as provided under Section 20.2 or ICT Act of 1973."
The tribunal then ordered that Sayedee, found guilty, "be hanged by the neck till he is dead".
The judge then said that the tribunal was refraining from passing any separate sentence of imprisonment for the other six offences although they were proven beyond doubt as the accused was already sentenced to death.
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