Police disperse Jamaat men firing tear gas, sound grenade in BSMMU

The leaders and activists of Jamaat Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir staged demonstrations around the ambulance carrying the body of Delwar Hossain Sayedee, who was sentenced to life in prison for crimes against humanity during the liberation war, demanding his namaz-e-janaza in Dhaka on Monday. Later, police fired tear gas and sound grenades to disperse them.

The Jamaat-Shibir leaders and activists, later, staged demonstrations inside the Bangbandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital and on the road in front of it calling the death of Delwar Hossain Sayedee a ‘murder’ all night. They also chanted various slogans against the government at the time.

However, the police took a strict stance at around 5:00 am and started firing tear gas and hurled sound grenades to disperse them. The entire area was covered with smoke from tear gas. At one point, the leaders and activists of Jamaat Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir left the area.

The Jamaat-Shibir leaders and activists claimed to the newspersons at the spot that several of them were injured in the incident. Later, the ambulance carrying the body of Delwar Hossain Sayedee left the Shahbag area amid heavy police guard. His body was taken to his village home in Pirojpur.

Delwar Hossain Sayedee died while undergoing treatment at the BSMMU at 8:40 pm. The leaders and activists thronged to the Shahbag area at around 11:00 pm as the news spread. They took position on the road from Shahbagh intersection to InterContinental, leading to halt of movement of vehicles on one side of the road.

Earlier on Monday, Jamaat leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee was taken to the Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmed Medical College in Gazipur after he suffered a heart attack. He was shifted to the BSMMU on the same night for advanced treatment.

Delwar Hossain Sayedee was the Nayeb-e-Amir of Jamaat Islami. Apart from that, he was also known as a religious speaker.

Earlier on 28 February, 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced Delwar Hossain Sayedee to death for crimes against humanity, including killing, rape, looting, torture and forcing people to convert religion. There are allegations that the activists of Jamaat and Chhatra Shibir unleashed violence across the country following the verdict. Several people were killed in the violence.

Delwar Hossain Sayedee appealed against the verdict of the International Crime Tribunal to the Appellate Division of the High Court. The court declared the verdict over his appeal on the basis of majority on 17 September 2014. The Appellate Division commuted his death sentence to life in prison.

Delwar Hossain appealed to review the verdict of the appellate division as well. However, the verdict was upheld and he was sent to the Kashimpur central jail.

Meanwhile Jamaat Islami issued a statement mourning the death of Delwar Hossain Sayedee. According to Jamaat Islami, Delwar Hossain Sayedee joined the party in 1979. He became a full member (rukun) of the party in 1982. He was elected a member of Jamaat’s ‘Majlis-e-Shura’ in 1989. He was elected a member of Jamaat’s executive council in 1996. He was elected the nayeb-e-ameer of Jamaat Islami in 2009.