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Dhaka, May 28, 2025: ATM Azharul Islam, a leader of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, who was acquitted of death penalty charges related to crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War, has been released from prison. On Wednesday morning around 9:15 AM, he was freed from Bangladesh Medical University and attended a reception organized by Jamaat-e-Islami at Shahbagh. The event was attended by Jamaat’s Ameer, Dr. Shafiqur Rahman, along with other central leaders.
The release was confirmed by Md. Jahangir Kabir, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Prisons for the Dhaka Division. On Tuesday (May 27), the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, overturned the death penalty verdict issued by the International Crimes Tribunal in 2014, acquitting Azharul Islam. This marks the first instance of an accused being acquitted in an appeal following a review petition in a crimes against humanity case, considered a historic precedent.
Azharul was arrested from his residence in Moghbazar on August 22, 2012. He was convicted in six incidents involving genocide, murder, abduction, and torture. Although the Appellate Division upheld his death penalty in 2019, he filed a second appeal following a change in government last year. The seven-member bench, led by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, unanimously announced the acquittal on Tuesday. After the judges signed the verdict, a short order was issued, followed by Azharul’s release order in accordance with the International Crimes Tribunal rules.
AI/MR
