Key points
- Verdict was delivered on Tuesday by a full bench
- Court also orders immediate release if there are no other pending cases against him
- The interim government has vowed elections will take place by June 2026
ISLAMABAD: The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has acquitted Jamaat-e-Islami leader ATM Azharul Islam, overturning the death sentence handed down to him.
According to Dhaka Tribune, the verdict was delivered on Tuesday by a full bench of seven justices of the Appellate Division, led by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, following the hearing of Azhar’s appeal.
Immediate release
The top court of Bangladesh has also ordered his immediate release if there are no other pending cases against him. The International Crimes Tribunal sentenced him to death on December 30, 2014. On January 28, 2015, he submitted a petition to the Appellate Division claiming his innocence. Later, on July 19, 2020, Azharul Islam filed the review petition with the relevant branch of the Appellate Division.
According to AFP, Islam has been in custody since 2012. Islam, who was born in 1952, was among six senior political leaders convicted during the tenure of Sheikh Hasina, whose 15-year-long autocratic rule as prime minister ended in August 2024 when a student-led revolt forced her to flee.
“Fortunate”
Islam’s lawyer Shishir Monir said he was “fortunate” because the five other senior political leaders who had been convicted — four from Jamaat-e-Islami, and another from the key Bangladesh National Party (BNP) — had already been hanged.
“He got justice because he is alive”, Monir said, according to AFP.
Political parties, including Jamaat-e-Islami, are readying for hugely anticipated elections which the interim government has vowed will take place by June 2026 at the latest.
