The High Court has upheld the death sentences of former officer-in-charge of a police station Pradeep Kumar Das and Inspector Md Liaqat Ali in the murder case of Major (Retd.) Sinha Rashed Khan.
It also upheld the life imprisonment sentences of six other convicts.
A High Court bench comprising justice Mostafizur Rahman and justice Sagir Hossain delivered the verdict on Monday, following hearings on the death references and appeals filed against the trial court’s verdict.
The six other accused whose life sentences were upheld are former sub-inspector Nandadulal Rakshit, constables Rubel Sharma and Sagar Deb, and local residents Nurul Amin, Mohammad Ayaz, and Nizam Uddin from Marishbunia village in Baharchhara, Cox’s Bazar.
On 31 July 2020, at around 9:30 pm, retired army Major Sinha Md. Rashed Khan was shot dead at Shamlapur check post on the Cox’s Bazar–Teknaf Marine Drive.
The Cox’s Bazar district and sessions judge’s court delivered its verdict in the case on 31 January 2022, sentencing OC Pradeep Kumar Das and Inspector Liaqat Ali to death, and six others to life imprisonment.
When a trial court hands down a death sentence, it must be approved by the High Court before it can be implemented - a process known as a death reference case.
Additionally, the convicted individuals are entitled to file jail appeals, regular appeals, and other legal petitions. Typically, the death reference and all related appeals are heard together.
Following the trial court’s verdict in the Sinha murder case, the relevant documents, including the judgment, reached the appropriate branch of the High Court in February 2022 and were registered as a death reference case that same year.
Meanwhile, the convicts filed separate jail and regular appeals. As part of the preparatory process for the hearing, a paper book (case summary) was compiled. After its completion and other necessary formalities, the chief justice assigned a dual bench of the High Court to hear and dispose of the case.
The hearing began on 23 April with the presentation of the paper book and concluded on 29 May. After the hearing, the court fixed 2 June for the verdict, which was delivered accordingly today, Monday.
At the hearing, attorney general Md. Asaduzzaman, deputy attorney general Jasim Sarkar, and assistant attorneys general Laboni Akter and Sumaiya Binte Aziz represented the state.
On the other hand, senior lawyers Mansurul Haque Chowdhury and SM Shahjahan, along with lawyers Sheikh Jahangir Alam and Shafiqul Islam Ripon, appeared on behalf of the accused.