Dhaka [Bangladesh], July 11: A special court in Bangladesh has begun the trial of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and two of her aides for their alleged roles in the violent suppression of a mass uprising that led to the fall of her government last year.
A three-member panel of judges of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on Thursday ordered the trial to begin against Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, Chief Prosecutor Tajul Islam said.
The tribunal has set August 3 and 4 for the prosecution's statement.
Mamun, who is currently in custody, has pleaded guilty and petitioned to become a state witness in the case, Islam said, adding that the trial would proceed in absentia for the two other defendants.
The trio face charges related to crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the handling of the student-led protests of 2024.
What began in July 2024 as demonstrations demanding the abolition of the public job quota system evolved into a nationwide uprising that culminated in the ouster of Hasina's government on August 5, 2024.
Hasina, who fled to India following her removal from power, is now facing multiple cases tied to the violent crackdown. A UN fact-finding mission estimates that approximately 1,400 people were killed during the protests.
"The crimes committed in Bangladesh during the protests are widespread and systematic, clearly constituting crimes against humanity," Islam said.
He said five charges have been raised against the accused, including incitement, provocation, issuing orders to kill people, superior command responsibility and participation in a joint criminal enterprise.
To support these allegations, the prosecution has submitted audio recordings purportedly documenting Hasina instructing security forces to use lethal weapons against demonstrators, along with other forms of evidence and witness testimonies.
Islam told reporters that the nature of the crimes was systematic, as they were executed in a coordinated manner across the country under a unified command.
"The directive came from the then prime minister, and the chain of command was followed by police and auxiliary forces in carrying out identical acts nationwide," he said.
This marks the formal beginning of the first trial against Hasina for alleged crimes against humanity.
The proceedings are taking place in the tribunal that her administration established in 2010 to prosecute individuals accused of atrocities during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan.
Source: Qatar Tribune
