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The High Court has commuted sentence of seven death-row convicts in a case filed over the Ramna Batamul concert bombing in the capital during Pahela Baishakh celebrations in 2001.
Among them, one's death sentence has been commuted to life sentence and six others have been given 10 years' imprisonment.
Besides, the HC has commuted life sentence of three convicts to 10 years in prison.
The HC bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Nasreen Akter delivered the verdict on Tuesday after hearing the death references, appeals and jail appeals filed by the convicts.
A court in Dhaka on 23 June 2014 sentenced eight persons to death and six others to life in prison. All convicts were reportedly members of the banned outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HuJI).
The HC handed down life imprisonment to Moulana Mohammad Tajuddin, a brother of former Deputy Minister Abdus Salam Pintu, who was earlier given death sentence by the trial court.
Also, death sentence of Moulana Akbar Hossain alias Helaluddin, Hafez Jahangir Alam Badar, Moulana Abu Bakar alias Selim Hawlader, Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hye, and Arif Hasan Suman has been commuted to 10 years' imprisonment.
The appeal petition of Mufti Abdul Hannan, another death convict of the case, has been declared closed as he was already executed in another case filed on charges of a grenade attack in Sylhet.
The HC upheld sentence on Shahadat Ullah Jewel, among the six convicts who were given life imprisonment by the trial court.
Life imprisonment of Moulana Abu Taher, Moulana Sabbir alias Abdul Hannan and Moulana Shawkat Osman alias Sheikh Farid has been commuted to 10 years' imprisonment. The HC also fined them Tk 50,000 each.
Apart from this, the HC closed the proceedings of the case against Moulana Abdur Rouf and Moulana Yahiya as the duo died.
On April 2001, two bombs went off during the 1408 Pahela Baishakh celebrations organised by Chhayanaut at Ramna Batamul, leaving nine people dead on the spot. Another died in a hospital later.
Two cases, one for murder and another for explosives, were filed with Ramna Police Station.
A Dhaka court on June 23, 2014 sentenced eight of the accused to death and six to life imprisonment in the murder case filed over the incident.
Later, the death references were sent to the High Court for its confirmation while the convicts filed appeal and jail appeal against their sentences. Upon hearing the death references and appeals the HC delivered its verdict.
The HC announced a part of the verdict on May 8 this year and concluded it on May 13.
Lawyers SM Shahjahan and Mohammad Shishir Manir appeared in the court hearing on behalf of the convicts, while Deputy Attorney-General Sultana Akter Rubi represented the state.
Another case filed under the Explosive Substances Act after the incident is still pending with a trial court in Dhaka.
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