Two lawyers aligned with the Awami League, Hasanuzzaman Tushar and Hasan Chowdhury, have appeared in person before the International Crimes Tribunal and offered unconditional apologies for describing the death sentences handed down to seven people, including Obaidul Quader, as a “kangaroo court verdict.”
They appeared before the tribunal on Monday morning, October 26, and presented their explanations. Following the hearing, the tribunal is expected to decide how serious their remarks were in terms of contempt of court.
Security was tightened around the tribunal ahead of the hearing. All hearings scheduled before Tribunal-2 were cancelled, and lawyers aligned with the Awami League were denied entry unless they were involved in the case.
The hearing had previously been scheduled for September 23 but was postponed because one of the judges was ill. The two accused lawyers had also appeared that day to respond to the contempt-of-court allegations. Several other lawyers aligned with the Awami League accompanied them, but not everyone was permitted to enter for security reasons.
On September 15, the tribunal announced death sentences against seven individuals, including Obaidul Quader, Nasim and Arafat.
The following day, September 16, prosecutors brought contempt-of-court allegations against the two lawyers over comments they had made on social media criticising the verdict.
The prosecution argued that, because the accused were lawyers, their remarks could create misleading impressions about the court among members of the public. This prompted the contempt-of-court proceedings.
