State-Appointed Lawyer Seeks Dismissal of Charges in Bangladesh's 2024 July-August Genocide Case against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

 State-Appointed Lawyer Seeks Dismissal of Charges in Bangladesh's 2024 July-August Genocide Case against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina                                                                                                      

      [Dhaka, Bangladesh | 7 July 2025]   In the genocide case related to events of July–August 2024, Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s state-appointed lawyer, Advocate Amir Hossain, has requested the charges against her be dismissed from the submitted investigation report.

The petition was presented on Monday, 7 July, during a hearing on charge framing at the three-member International Crimes Tribunal, presided over by Justice Md. Golam Mortuja Majumder. During the hearing, Advocate Hossain stated, “Sheikh Hasina did not refer to the protesters as 'children of Razakars'; her statement was misinterpreted.”

In addition to Sheikh Hasina, the other two accused in the case are former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun.

Meanwhile, former IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun was presented before the tribunal in connection with the hearing. On Monday morning, he was brought to court in a prison van.

Earlier, on Tuesday (1 July), the first hearing on charge framing against Sheikh Hasina and the two others was held. That day, Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tazul Islam presented the charges before the tribunal, also presided over by Justice Md. Golam Mortuja Majumder. State-appointed lawyer Amir Hossain was present on behalf of the defendants. The hearing was broadcast live on state-run television BTV.

On 1 June, the tribunal accepted five charges against Sheikh Hasina and two others. Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tazul Islam, along with Prosecutors Abdus Sobhan Tarafder and Mizanul Islam, read the charges aloud in court—later aired by BTV and other national media outlets.

Prior to that, on 12 May, the investigation agency submitted a report implicating Sheikh Hasina in the July-August genocide. The report identified her as the main instigator behind the mass killings.

On 18 February, the tribunal directed that the investigation against Sheikh Hasina in relation to the genocide be completed by 20 April. The order came from the three-member tribunal headed by Justice Md. Golam Mortuja Majumder, in response to a prosecution petition.

Additionally, on 17 December last year, the tribunal ordered the completion of investigations within two months against Sheikh Hasina, Obaidul Quader, and 44 others in two separate cases.

The ongoing trial at the International Crimes Tribunal is centered around allegations that Sheikh Hasina and others were the masterminds and order-givers behind the shootings and killings of unarmed student protestors during the anti-discrimination movement.                                                               ✍️ Report Prepared By: Fozla Rabbi Robna