Dhaka: The High Court has ordered the Law Ministry to withdraw the judicial powers of Feni Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Judge Mamunur Rashid and attach him to the ministry for handing down death sentences to the accused in a 'wholesale manner' in the Nusrat Jahan Rafi murder case.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the High Court of Justice Bhishmadev Chakrabortty and Justice KM Rasheduzzaman Raja observed that the trial court caused a 'serious disaster' for the families of the accused by handing down arbitrary death sentences. The court also emphasized the potential consequences of imposing death sentences indiscriminately, highlighting the lack of specific evidence and proper assessment of the facts in the case.
The High Court made these observations while acquitting 10 of the 16 accused in the case, stating that the charges against them were not proven. Additionally, the court upheld the death sentences of two convicts and commuted the sentences of four others to life imprisonment.
Senior lawyers Mansurul Haque Chowdhury, SM Shahjahan, Tajul Islam, Barrister SM Masud Hossain Dolan, and Mohammad Shishir represented the accused, while Attorney General Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kajal and Deputy Attorney General Syed Ijaz Kabir represented the state. Relatives of both the accused and the victim were present in the courtroom when the verdict was pronounced.