DHAKA, Nov 15, 2017 (BSS) – The prosecution told the court today that the prime target of August 21 grenade attack, 2004, was killing then Opposition Leader and incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Upon completion of the arguments on the 11th consecutive day, the court adjourned the hearing till November 20 (Monday).
Chief prosecutor in the case, Advocate Syed Rezaur Rahman, told the court that then state minister and BNP leader Lutfuzzaman Babar was present at the meeting held at the house of then deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu to make unhindered the August 21 grenade attacks.
The prosecutor informed the court of the matter quoting confessional statements made under section 164 by five Harkatul Jihad operatives — Md Rafiqul Islam alias Sabuj alias Shameem alias Rashed, Abul Kalam Azad alias Bulbul, Md Jahangir Alam (Kushtia), Maulana Abu Sayeed alias Dr Abu Zafor and Maulana Abdus Salam.
Of the five militants, Rafiqul, Bulbul, and Jahangir (Kushtia) directly took part in the August 21 grenade attacks. Dr Zafor was involved in the process of planning, conspiring and execution of the attacks while Maulana Salam in planning, the prosecution said.
Maulana Salam in his confessional statement disclosed the names of the people in the government and in administration involved in giving support to make the August 21 grenade attacks a success.
The names of then BNP-Jamaat government’s state minister for home Lutfuzzaman Babar, deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu, and former DGFI official Saiful Islam Joarder came up in his statement.
Maulana Tajuddin supplied the grenades used in the attack from the government residence of his brother Abdus Salam Pintu.
The confessional statements made by four others disclosed the entire process of planning and execution of the August 21 grenade attack.
The prosecution side has already held arguments on confessional statements made by Mufti Abdul Hannan and Maulana Mainuddin. A total of the 12 confessional statements under section 164 were made in connection with the August 21 grenade attacks.
The deadly grenade attacks on a rally of the AL at Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital city was carried out on August 21 in 2004, in which 24 people, including Ivy Rahman, wife of late president Zillur Rahman and then Mohila AL president, were killed and over 500 others injured.
Two separate cases were lodged to this end.
A total of 52 people were made accused in the charge sheets in the cases and of them, 23 accused are now in jails while 18 others went into hiding and Mufti Abdul Hannan, Jamaat leader Ali Ahsan Mujaheed and Sharif Saidul Alam Bipul, were relieved from the charges as they were hanged to death in other cases.