Dhaka. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh expressed regret over its earlier decision in a recently released full text of the judgment (every word of the judgment, details and legal reasoning). In this decision, the death sentence of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam was upheld in the case filed for crimes against humanity committed during Bangladesh’s 1971 war.
“This Appellate Division holds with full judicial responsibility that in its earlier decision it failed to properly and impartially consider the shortcomings of the evidence and the larger context,” a seven-judge bench led by then Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed said in the 74-page judgment, The Daily Star reported.
The Supreme Court said, “Regrettably, the earlier decision fell short of the high standards of investigation and impartiality required in criminal cases of this serious nature.” On May 27, 2025, the Appeals Division overturned its earlier decision, which had upheld the death sentence handed down against Azharul by the International Criminal Tribunal (ICT) in 2014. The Court also acquitted him of all charges and directed the jail authorities to release him immediately if he was not wanted in any other case.
This decision was given by the bench after the appeal of the Jamaat leader. He had challenged the decision of ICT. Azharul’s lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir said that his client was in jail since August 8, 2012. Released on 28 May 2025 after the Supreme Court decision. Presently ATM Azharul is the Naib-e-Ameer of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. MP has been elected from Rangpur-2 in the national elections held on 12 February.
It is noteworthy that in the cases related to crimes against humanity committed in 1971, Jamaat leader Matiur Rehman Nizami, Abdul Kader Mulla, Mohammad Kamruzzaman, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, Mir Qasim Ali and BNP leader Salahuddin Kader Choudhary have been hanged after the decisions of the Supreme Court.
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