Dhaka: The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 today adjourned the hearing of a case against 13 individuals, including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, related to enforced disappearances and torture at the Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) during the previous Awami League government. The tribunal, led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mazumder, scheduled the next session for March 30 following the conclusion of testimony by prosecution witness Iqbal Chowdhury.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Iqbal Chowdhury, the fourth prosecution witness, recounted his experience of being detained by plainclothes security officers on May 7, 2018, from his Mohammadpur Beribadh residence. He spent nearly a year at the JIC, where he endured severe mistreatment. During his detention, Chowdhury suffered personal losses with the deaths of his two elder sisters and his younger brother, who died shortly before his release on April 25, 2019. He accused Sheikh Hasina, Major General Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and JIC officials of causing his suffering and called for their legal accountability.
The tribunal initially filed charges in the case on December 18, 2025. Along with Sheikh Hasina and Tarique Ahmed Siddique, the other accused include Md Akbar Hossain, Md Saiful Abedin, Md Saiful Alam, Md Tabrej Shams Chowdhury, Hamidul Haque, Mohammad Touhidul Islam, Sheikh Md Sarwar Hossain, Kabir Ahammed, Md Mahbubur Rahman Siddiqui, Ahmed Tanvir Mazhar Siddiqui, and Mokhchurul Haque. Currently, three accused are in custody-Sheikh Md Sarwar Hossain, Md Mahbubur Rahman Siddiqui, and Ahmed Tanvir Mazhar Siddiqui-who have all pleaded not guilty before the tribunal.
Previously, on October 8, the tribunal acknowledged charges against 30 individuals, including Sheikh Hasina, in two distinct cases concerning enforced disappearances and torture purportedly occurring at the Taskforce for Interrogation (TFI) Cell and the JIC during the Awami League’s tenure. The prosecution has also filed additional charges against 17 individuals, including Sheikh Hasina and Tarique Ahmed Siddique, for similar acts allegedly executed at the TFI Cell. The other accused in this case include Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, Benazir Ahmed, M Khurshid Hossain, Barrister Md Harun Ur Rashid, Anwar Latif Khan, Md Jahangir Alam, Tofayel Mostafa Sarwar, KM Azad, Md Qamrul Hasan, Md Mahabub Alam, Abdullah Al Momen, Md Sarwar Bin Qashem, Md Khairul Islam, Md Moshiur Rahman Jewel, and Saiful Islam Suman.