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The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has set Thursday, July 17, 2025, as the date for hearing the appeal against the acquittal of BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman and former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar, along with other accused, in the high-profile 21 August grenade attack case.
On Tuesday, July 15, 2025, a five-member Appellate Division bench, led by Chief Justice Dr. Syed Refaat Ahmed, issued this order. The hearing follows the state’s appeal against the High Court’s ruling that acquitted all accused in the case. On June 1, 2025, the Appellate Division granted the state leave to appeal against the High Court’s decision.
In court, BNP was represented by senior lawyers, including Barrister Jamir Uddin Sarker, Joynul Abedin, Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon, Barrister Kayser Kamal, Barrister Ruhul Kuddus Kajol, and Advocate Gazi Kamrul Islam Sajal. The state was represented by Attorney General Md. Asaduzzaman.
The High Court, in its verdict, declared the trial conducted by the lower court based on a supplementary charge sheet as illegal and void. The bench, comprising Justices A.K.M. Asaduzzaman and Syed Enayet Hossain, dismissed the death reference and granted the appeals and jail appeals of the accused, resulting in the acquittal of all, including Tarique Rahman and Lutfozzaman Babar.
The grenade attack occurred on August 21, 2004, at Bangabandhu Avenue in Dhaka, targeting an Awami League rally. The attack killed 24 Awami League leaders and activists and injured around 300 others. Sheikh Hasina, then the opposition leader, narrowly escaped. Allegations were made that the then BNP-Jamaat coalition government attempted to divert the investigation. In 2007, the caretaker government initiated a fresh probe, and in 2008, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) filed a charge sheet against 22 accused, alleging the attack aimed to assassinate Sheikh Hasina and destabilize the Awami League. A supplementary charge sheet later named 30 accused, including Tarique Rahman.
On October 10, 2018, Dhaka’s Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 sentenced 19 accused, including Lutfozzaman Babar and Abdus Salam Pintu, to death, and 19 others, including Tarique Rahman, to life imprisonment. Eleven others received various prison terms. The High Court, after reviewing the death reference and appeals, acquitted all accused, citing procedural irregularities in the lower court’s trial.
**High Court Publishes Acquittal Verdict for Tarique and Zubaida in ACC Case**In a separate development, the High Court published a 52-page verdict on July 14, 2025, acquitting Tarique Rahman and his wife, Dr. Zubaida Rahman, in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). The verdict, released on the Supreme Court’s website, noted that the prosecution failed to prove the allegations. The High Court’s ruling on May 28, 2025, overturned the lower court’s verdict, which had sentenced Tarique to nine years and Zubaida to three years in prison for concealing wealth and acquiring assets beyond known income sources.
