Defense lawyer S. M. Shahjahan (centre) spoke to the media at the Bangladesh High Court in Dhaka on Sunday following a verdict that acquitted all accused in a 2004 grenade attack case, including Bangladesh Nationalist Party vice-chairman Tarique Rahman and former home minister Lutfozzaman Babar. — AFP
A prominent Bangladeshi politician, accused of orchestrating a fatal 2004 grenade attack on former premier Sheikh Hasina, saw his conviction overturned on Sunday, marking another step towards his anticipated return from exile in London. Tarique Rahman, the son of two-time premier Khaleda Zia and the de facto leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), was previously convicted in absentia for the attack on a political rally organized by Hasina. However, the High Court in Dhaka ruled that the guilty verdict against him and 48 others was unlawful, as the trial court failed to adhere to proper procedures. The BNP has persistently denied any involvement in the attack and has accused Hasina's government of meddling in the trial to target her political adversaries.
"The state presented 225 witnesses, none of whom testified to seeing any of the accused hurl grenades or participate in conspiracy meetings," lead defense lawyer S.M. Shahjahan informed reporters after Sunday's verdict. The 2004 grenade attack was aimed at a rally by Hasina's Awami League party, which was in opposition at the time, and the blast occurred just as Hasina was concluding her speech. Tarique's mother, Zia, Hasina's long-time rival and premier at the time, was accused of interfering with the initial investigation into the attack, which resulted in the deaths of more than two dozen people.
Another defense lawyer, Shishir Monir, stated that a subsequent investigation under Hasina's administration coerced suspects into naming Tarique and other BNP leaders as the culprits in the attack. "The Task Force for Intelligence detained the accused for up to 261 days and forcibly extracted their confessions," he told reporters. "While we sympathize with the victims of the grenade attack who deserve justice... the government should have sought out the real perpetrators," he added.
Hasina fled the country in August after a student-led revolution ended her autocratic 15-year rule. With his mother's health deteriorating, Tarique is widely expected to eventually return to Bangladesh after more than 15 years in exile in London and take the helm of the BNP in her place. Rafiqul Islam, a key witness in the grenade case that led to the 2018 convictions, expressed that the families of those killed and injured still need justice despite Sunday's verdict. "I saw... body parts strewn on the street," he told AFP. "The court has acquitted everyone," he added. "But the victims still deserve justice."
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