Prosecution asked to submit charges against Alim by March 15

From New Age
The International Crimes Tribunal on Monday asked the prosecution to submit by March 15 formal charges against Abdul Alim, former BNP lawmaker and minister.

The ICT issued the order after the prosecution informed it that the war crimes investigation agency had submitted its report against Alim in the morning

Also known as war crimes tribunal, the ICT was instituted for prosecuting the

1971 war crimes suspects.

The prosecution sought time for examining the investigation report and other documents submitted by the investigation agency for preparing the formal charges against Alim

The tribunal of Justice Nizamul Huq, Justice ATM Fazle Kabir and judge AKM Zahir Ahmed also extended the period of the conditional bail, it had granted to Alim on March 31, 2011, and asked Alim to appear before the tribunal on March 15.

The investigation agency submitted the report Monday morning in compliance with the order the tribunal had issued on October 18, 2011.

The investigation report found Alim’s involvement in 17 incidents of crimes against humanity in Jaipurhat during the War of Independence in 1971, including three rapes, murder of 684 people, dumping bodies of a number of them in mass graves, arson, abduction, torture, robbery and forced deportation of a number of people, the investors said.

Alim appeared before the tribunal seated in a wheelchair.

Arrested at Jaipurhat on March 27, 2011, Alim was released, on conditional bail, from Dhaka Central Jail on April 1, 2011.

He was arrested about nine hours after the tribunal had issued a warrant sought by the prosecution on war crimes charges.

On March 31, the tribunal granted him the conditional bail.

Among the war crimes accused, so far, the tribunal granted bail to Alim alone.