13 Get Death Sentence for Lynching 6 Students in Aminbazar

A court has sentenced 13 people to death and 19 to life imprisonment in a case of lynching six students on suspicion of robbery at Aminbazar in Savar on the night of Shab e-Barat nine years ago. The court acquitted the remaining 25 accused. 

Judge Ismat Jahan of Dhaka's Second Additional District and Sessions Judge's Court pronounced the verdict on Thursday (December 2nd).

The convicts sentenced to death are Abdul Alim, Saeed Member, Abdur Rashid, Ismail Hossain, Jamser Ali, Mir Hossain, Mojibur Rahman, Nur Hossain, Rajjab Ali, Alam, Rana, Abdul Hamid, Aslam Mia.

The convicts sentenced to life imprisonment are: Shaheen Ahmed, Farid Khan, Rajib Hossain, Wasim, Sattar, Selim, Monir Hossain, Alamgir, Mubarak Hossain, Akhil Khandaker, Bashir, Rubel, Nur Islam, Shahadat Hossain, Tutul, Masud, Mokhles, Totan, Saiful. .

Earlier in the day, the accused were produced in the court from Dhaka's Keraniganj Central Jail under special security. They have since been remanded in court custody.

Additional Public Prosecutor of the concerned court Anand Chandra Biswas said that the total number of accused in the case is 60. Three of them died. At present the number of accused is 57. On November 21, 40 people were denied bail and ordered to be sent to jail. One accused is out on bail. The rest of the accused are absconding.

Earlier, after hearing the arguments of the accused and the state on November 22, court fixed December 2 for announcing the verdict.

Incidentally, on the night of Shab e-Barat on July 17, 2011, seven friends went to visit Keblachar in Baradeshi village of Aminbazar. Six of them were beaten to death on suspicion of robbery. Abdul Malek, a local sand trader, then filed a robbery case against the injured, including Al-Amin, at Savar Model Police Station. And the police became the plaintiff and filed a murder case accusing the unidentified villagers.

The deceased have been identified as Shams Rahim, an A level student of Dhanmondi Maple Leaf, Ibrahim Khalil, a second year undergraduate student of Mirpur Government Bangla College, Touhidur Rahman Palash, a second year student of Physics Department of Bangla College, Tejgaon College management, Sitab Jabir Munib, a BBA second year student at Bangladesh University of Business and Technology (BUBT) in Mirpur and Kamruzzaman Kant, a science student at Bangla College Higher Secondary.

Al-Amin, a friend of the victims, was seriously injured but survived. After the investigation on January 7, 2013, RAB Additional Superintendent of Police Sharif Uddin Ahmed filed a chargesheet against 60 people.

Then on July 8, 2013, the court started the formal trial of the case by framing charges against 60 accused. During the trial, 55 witnesses testified in the case. After the incident, 14 accused were arrested in the case and gave confessional statements in the court.