Attorney General (AG) Md Asaduzzaman. File photo

DHAKA, Oct 23, 2025 (BSS) - Attorney General (AG) Md Asaduzzaman today said that the prosecution has proved beyond doubt the charges brought in the crimes against humanity case against three, including ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, over atrocities committed during the July-August Mass Uprising.

Delivering his closing argument as the state's chief legal officer before the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1, headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mojumder, the attorney general said that the prosecution has presented documentary, oral, and circumstantial evidence to prove the case.

"The defence argued that the accused gave no orders and were innocent. Fortunately, they did not say there had been no July Uprising in Bangladesh, or that 1,400 people were not killed, or that over 30,000 others were not injured. But if we accept that 1,400 people were indeed killed, that such a large uprising took place across the country, and that killings were carried out nationwide under state patronage using the state apparatus, then the question remains-who committed these crimes?" he said.

Asaduzzaman said the prosecution has clearly demonstrated who committed the crimes, how they were committed, and under whose instructions.

"The accused used the state machinery to carry out systematic and widespread killings. We have shown whose directions were executed, how the chain of command worked, and who operated and implemented those orders. The accused committed crimes against humanity and later fled the country. They are aware of this trial, they are following it, and they have made statements about it. Even in exile, they are issuing instructions to obstruct this trial," he added.

The attorney general said the evidence placed before the tribunal is strong enough to stand before any court in the world. "If this evidence were 
presented anywhere else, no court could avoid sentencing the accused in the interest of justice," he said.

"As a nation, we are standing today at the threshold of civilization, striving to move forward. If we fail to ensure justice here, we will remain, 
in poet Helal Hafiz's words, cowards in the eyes of future generations," he observed.

Responding to questions raised about whether the accused killers would get justice, the attorney general said, "Many are asking if the killers will get justice, but should justice be seen only from their perspective? Don't the 1,400 people who were killed in 36 days deserve justice? Don't the thousands who were maimed have the right to justice? Shouldn't the state itself get 
justice? 

Referring to Sheikh Hasina's absence, Asaduzzaman said, "I had hoped she would come forward to face justice. Once, in a political speech, she challenged another leader to return to Bangladesh and face trial if he had courage. I believed she said that sincerely. Today I realized but she did not. If she truly had courage, she would have returned to stand trial on the soil of Bangladesh."

Turning to the tribunal, the attorney general said, "No matter how difficult or obstructed this trial may be, if we cannot establish justice by breaking through all barriers, we will fail as a nation. If we do not ensure justice, countless innocent lives in Bangladesh will remain at risk-five-year-old children, ten-year-old boys like Anas, youths like Mugdha who was killed while distributing water, and Abu Sayeed who fell on the street. If we fail to conclude this trial with justice, the people of Bangladesh will go down in history as cowards."

"For that reason," he concluded, "I firmly state that what we have proved in this trial is beyond doubt."

After hearing arguments from both sides, the tribunal fixed November 13, 2025, for announcing the date of judgment in the case against Sheikh Hasina, 
former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who has already pleaded guilty and became an approver.