Dhaka (TDI): A Bangladesh court on Tuesday sentenced seven senior aides of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death over crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the 2024 uprising that brought down her government.
A three-member International Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka, headed by Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, delivered the verdict against the seven defendants, all of whom are currently fugitives living in self-imposed exile in India and the United States.
The convicts include Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader, former State Minister for Information Mohammad Ali Arafat, Joint General Secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Youth Wing Chairman Sheikh Fazle Shams Parash, Youth Wing General Secretary Moinul Hossain Nikhil, Student Wing President Saddam Hussain and Student Wing General Secretary Sheikh Wali Asif Enan.
The tribunal also ordered the confiscation of half the assets belonging to Quader, Nasim, Arafat and Parash. The seized assets will be distributed as compensation to families of people killed or injured during the July uprising, according to the verdict.
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The latest verdict comes after Sheikh Hasina herself was sentenced to death by the same tribunal last November over crimes against humanity and her alleged role in the violent crackdown on protesters during the 2024 uprising.
Hasina fled Bangladesh and has been living in neighbouring India since the fall of her government. She has rejected the proceedings against her and has vowed to return to Bangladesh in December.
According to the United Nations, at least 1,400 people were killed and thousands more injured during the uprising, with Hasina’s security forces and supporters of her Awami League accused of carrying out the crackdown.
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The unrest, which began as a student-led movement, eventually developed into a broader anti-government uprising and forced Hasina to leave office.
The latest convictions add to a growing number of cases brought before Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunals following the fall of Hasina’s government.
Across seven verdicts delivered by the two tribunals, 68 defendants have so far been convicted, with 22 receiving death sentences. Of those accused, 18 remain at large while four are currently in custody.
The trials have become a central part of Bangladesh’s efforts to prosecute those accused of responsibility for violence during the 2024 uprising, while the proceedings have also drawn international attention over concerns surrounding due process and the use of capital punishment.
