In loving memory of Qayyum Chowdhury

First death anniversary of pioneering artist

Fayza Haq

In his simple trademark kurta pyjama, Qayyum Chowdhury was as imposing as a Roman emperor in a toga and laurels. In the '50s, veering away from folk art and moving away from realism, Qayyum entered a phase of semi-abstraction. This gave him subject for work and from it he developed his unique style. He used folk art for stylistic reasons. He borrowed from the lives of the common man. His figures were flat but supple. His bright colours had a mass appeal. He took images in their geometrical shapes and arranged them in a modern way.
On this day just a year ago, the stalwart passed away on the stage of the world's biggest classical music festival (an art form he held close to heart), with an unfinished sentence hanging from his mouth. This year's edition of the Bengal Classical Music Festival is fittingly dedicated to his memory.
Qayyum reworked forms in a poetic way. The decorated designs of country boats filled his work. He kept his main object in the centre. He left the space around his subject with minute forms. Thus his central figures stood out because of the play of chiaroscuro. His work was always rhythmic, neat and clean. In his “Bathing Women” (2002) and “Village Autumn” (2002), the women in hues of red, blue and beige merge with nature, the rivers, trees and fields.
Even his black and white drawings for magazines, newspapers and books had and beauty of their own--like the sketches of Pablo Picasso or Rabindranath Tagore. As a successor of Zainul Abedin and Qamarul Hassan, he roamed freely through the many realms of art. Through his brush and pen he depicted the common man of Bengal--the farmers and fishermen.
In the '60s, his drawing captured the Bengali people's struggle for survival. He sought to draw near the land and seek its roots. The series of watercolours depict the Language Movement and Liberation War of 1971 eloquently and in different mediums. Behind his work was the driving force of his spirit. He was moved by the helplessness of the victims of the tragedies. He honoured the victims through his treatment of his work. His “Boat” - pen and ink (2001), “Setting Sun” - pen and ink (2001_, “Secret Talk” (2004), “Worried” - acrylic (2004) depicted his women subjects in green and blue simple lines bringing in the beauty of the minutest leaves and ferns that formed the backdrops of his works.
In his famous drawing of a woman holding a yellow bird, dressed in a simple blue sari, with a brown border and a green blouse, she is seen surrounded by all the wealth of Bangladesh's nature. His faces, rivers and landscapes remain etched in our hearts. The red  swirling sun, bits of leaves, ferns and buds of red flowers; blue fish swimming in the river with blue waves and red seaweed, a rotating beige, red and pale green disc depicting the sun are found in the peaceful and restful picture. A yellow bird in flight and squiggles of blue clumps of trees complete the image.

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COP21: World leaders begin climate talks

 

A woman holds a sign during the Global Climate March in Santiago on November 29, 2015, on the eve of the UN conference on climate change COP 21, to take place in Paris. Photo: AFP

AFP, Paris

World leaders opened an historic summit in the French capital on today aimed at ending decades of political gridlock and forging an elusive agreement to avert calamitous global warming.
The leaders kicked off 12 days of negotiations in search of a pact that would radically restructure the global economy away from its dependancy on fossil fuels that are blamed for climate change.
More than 150 leaders gathered at a sprawling conference centre on the northern outskirts of Paris under heavy security following this month's terror attacks in the city, which appeared to have galvanised commitment for climate action.
Scientists warn that, unless action is taken soon, mankind will endure ever-worsening catastrophic events, such as droughts that will lead to conflict and rising sea levels that will wipe out low-lying island nations.

France's President Francois Hollande greets his US counterpart Barack Obama at the COP21
United Nations Climate Change Conference in Le Bourget, outside Paris, on November 30, 2015.
Photo: AFP

But world leaders have also vowed to forge an ambitious deal to honour the 130 people killed in the November 13 attacks that were claimed by the Islamic State group.
"The fate of humanity is at stake in this conference. After the attacks in France, we have to deal with the urgent priorities and respond to the terrorist challenge but also act for the long term," French President Francois Hollande said.
In an interview with French daily newspaper "20 minutes", Hollande said leaders would meet in
 Paris "to reaffirm their solidarity with France" and to "assume their responsibilities in the face of
the warming of the planet".

"History will judge the heads of state and government harshly if, in December 2015, they miss this opportunity."
Stumbling blocks
US President Barack Obama's first act after touching down in Paris early on Today was to visit the scene of the worst carnage at the Bataclan concert venue.
The summit is "an opportunity to stand in solidarity with our oldest ally... and reaffirm our commitment to protect our people and our way of life from terrorist threats," Obama said in a Facebook post before flying to Paris.

Scientists warn that unless action is taken soon, the earth will endure ever-worsening catastrophic 

events, such as rising sea levels from melting glaciers that will wipe out low-lying island nations

 and threaten species like the polar bear. Photo: AFP

The United Nations has hosted annual summits to tackle the vexed global warming issue since 1995, but all previous efforts have foundered, primarily due to deep divisions between rich and poor nations.
Many poor nations insist rich countries bear the most responsibility for tackling the problem
because they have burnt the most fossil fuels since the Industrial Revolution on their way to prosperity.
"Justice demands that, with what little carbon we can still safely burn, developing countries are allowed to grow," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in a column in the Financial Times.
"The lifestyles of a few must not crowd out opportunities for the many still on the first steps of the development ladder."
But the United States and other developed nations insist more must be done by China, India and
other emerging countries, which are burning increasing amounts of coal to power their
fast-growing economies.
In a timely illustration of the immediate ramifications of rampant coal burning, poisonous smog enveloped Beijing and other parts of northern China on Today.

Potential stumbling blocks in Paris range from providing finance for climate vulnerable and poor countries, to scrutiny of commitments to curb greenhouse gases and even the legal status of the accord.
Still, important progress has been made ahead of the meeting. One of the key successes has been a process in which 183 nations have submitted voluntary action plans on how they would tackle
global warming.
UN climate chief Christiana Figueres said these provide the architecture for more ambitious efforts that could eventually limit global warming to less than two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-Industrial Revolution levels.
Two degrees Celsius is the threshold at which scientists say the worst impacts of global warming
will be inevitable.
Today's summit is also the biggest gathering of world leaders to tackle climate change.
"And who says climate is not on the political agenda," Figueres said in a Twitter post on Today, referring to the record-breaking number of leaders.
'No planet B'
To pressure world leaders into forging an agreement, more than half a million people participated in climate protests around the world over the weekend.
"There is no planet B" and "Our Children Need a Future" read placards held by some of the 50,000 people who turned out in London's Hyde Park, in scenes replicated across the world.

Protestors clashed with riot police during a rally against global warming on November 29, 2015 in 

Paris, a day ahead of the start of COP 21 conference on climate change. Photo: AFP

"The charge from the streets for leaders to act on climate has been deafening, with record numbers turning out across the world," said Emma Ruby-Sachs, campaign director for Avaaz, one of the organisers.
French authorities had banned protests in Paris due to security fears following the terror attacks.
But in a show of defiance and determination to have their voices heard on climate change, thousands of people in Paris gathered to create a two-kilometre (1.2-mile) human chain.
Their stand was disrupted, however, when a band of anti-capitalist militants infiltrated the protests, leading to clashes with riot police which saw hundreds of arrests. Some 317 people were in custody, police sources said Today.
On a more artistic precursor to the talks, the Eiffel Tower was turned green on Sunday as part of an art project that will see "virtual trees" grow on the landmark to support reforestation.

Mayor Annisul vows action against attackers

Annisul Huq vows to take action against attackers who went berserk yesterday during an eviction drive at Tejgaon. Photo: Amran Hossain

Star Online Report

Dhaka North City Mayor Annisul Huq has vowed to take action against the attackers who went berserk yesterday during an eviction drive at Tejgaon.
“An influential quarter is running drug trade and toll business in the area. Their toll collection will stop after the eviction. That’s why they attacked,” the mayor said.
“The attackers will face a tough action. You (people) just help me,” the DNCC mayor said at a press conference held at a hotel in Karwan Bazar in Dhaka today.
The grabbers have played a political game, Anisul said, but he kept mum despite having adequate forces with him.
The mayor further said he knew who misguided the truck labours and vowed not let anyone grab the city streets.
Anisul said he has requested the home minister and police authorities to detain those involved with yesterday’s attack. The people who were trying to show power by halting the drive will not be spared, he said, sounded a note of caution.
Several hundred transport workers fought pitched battles with police during an eviction drive against illegal structures at the capital's Tejgaon Truck Terminal yesterday.
This happened when Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Annisul Huq himself was leading the drive, which began around 1:00pm.
He remained virtually confined there for about three hours till around 5:00pm and was later escorted out of the office by police and Rab members.
At least three people suffered pellet injuries, as police opened fire on the agitating workers who responded by throwing brick chips. A traffic cop was hit by bricks and was seen bleeding.

[WATCH NOW] Tech school for kids

SMA Ronie

Back in May, we came across seven steel violins installed on the walls at an art exhibition at the Bengal Art Lounge in Gulshan. These violins would automatically start playing themselves when visitors came close to them.

If that doesn’t surprise you then you might be surprised to know that the idea came from a group of 20 tech whiz kids.  They used sensors in the violins that trigger a distortion sound when you come close.
This group of children is being mentored at The Tech Academy. This is a tech firm that sponsors children’s talents in electronics, software programming, hardware and robotics at Moar in Banani in the city.
This tech idea was installed in the solo exhibition of artist Mahbubur Rahman at Bengal Art Lounge last May.
Working with circuits and programming, with guidance of their mentor Shams Jaber, the kids have started on another interesting idea of a gadget with sensors for the blind.
Their “Batman Gadget” can help blind persons from bumping into objects.

“This gadget is in an early stage. It’s being tested as a children’s game,” said, Shams, a dropout from the business school of BRAC University now tinkers with different ideas with the kids exploring technologies and ideas.
Shams said, the whole world is moving forward with technology. Programming is a language that should be learned from childhood like any other language.
“We want to create such an environment to guide and nurture the curious young minds.”
So far, these tiny techies have made a Bluetooth-based toy car, a GPS tracker, games and their software and hardware.
They have started a project to convert singer Anusheh Anadil’s car into a solar and wind powered car. They often launch new games at her company, Jatra.
“Children are naturally curious and I support Tech Academy because they allow that curiosity to be alive and be the driving force of all their innovations,” said Anusheh, Creative Director of Jatra Bangladesh.
She said, “I was very impressed by all the young kids from the Tech school who taught us about how to generate electricity from not just the sun and wind, but also from plants and walking shoes.”
Shams along with some partners started WNES-Research and Innovation Centre in 2013 to teach children programming, robotics and engineering. They later changed the name to The Tech School.
He has opened a free school for the underprivileged-family kids three months back at the Ain O Salish Kendra premises. It has been running free schools at Bandarban for the last one year and at Fatikchhari for the last six months.
Shams along with two other mentors teach 15 kids each from the free schools with a vision to develop the kids as gadget makers instead of growing up as consumers, he said.
They have also planned to start two more projects for the Dalit community and madrassa girls in associations with leaping boundaries, Shams said.
“The Tech Academy is our ICT training partner and we are going to launch a volunteering project for madrassa girls tentatively by January 2016,” said Sadia Afrin, programme manager of Leaping Boundaries that is working for supporting madrassa students with general and technical knowledge like English, ICT, Soft Skills and Psychosocial Support.
From time to time, the academy arranges for its kids to meet teachers and students of Shahjalal University of Engineering and Technology, Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology, Brac University and even the USA’s Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he said.

Cop among 3 to walk gallows for killing 9-yr-old boy

 Star Online Report

Abu Sayeed's body was wrapped in sacks and recovered from the attic of Constable Ebadur Rahman's house at Kumarpara, Sylhet.

A Sylhet court today awarded death penalty to three persons including a sacked police constable for killing nine-year-old Abu Sayeed for ransom.
Judge Abdur Rashid of Sylhet Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal also fined the condemned convicts Tk 1 lakh each.
The convicts are Abdur Rakib, general secretary of Sylhet district unit Olama League, Ebadur Rahman, a sacked constable of Sylhet Airport Police Station, and Ataur Rahman Geda, a police informant.
The court also acquitted Mahib Hossain Masum, publicity secretary of the district unit of Olama League, of the case as allegation against him was not proved.
READ MORE: Sylhet numbed
The convicts abducted Abu Sayeed, son of Andul Matin, on March 11 for a ransom of Tk 5 lakh and later killed him for recognizing the policeman.
On March 12, Ebadur confessed to the crime before a magistrate. Two days later police recovered Sayeed's body from the attic of the building where both Ebadur and Sayeed resided.

Municipality polls in time, campaigns sans MPs

Star Online Report

The Election Commission has decided not to defer the municipality polls slated for December 30 despite requests from several participating parties.
In a meeting held at the commission today, the authorities have also decided to keep lawmakers out of electioneering campaigns of the aspirants.
A highly placed official at the Election Commission, on condition of anonymity, confirmed The Daily Star on the decisions taken at the meeting.
It was ruling Awami League and the parliamentary opposition Jatiya Party who met chief election commissioner yesterday and advocated for allowing the MPs to take part in campaigns.
Only BNP, who came to the decision of participating after considering the sentiment of root-level activists, backed the restriction placed by electoral code of conduct.
The restriction will not affect BNP as it boycotted the parliamentary elections of January 5, 2014 and does not have any representation at the parliament.
However, both BNP and Jatiya Party had batted for a deferral in the polls schedule.

Pakistan denies war atrocities in 1971

Star Online Report

Pakistan today summoned the acting high commissioner of Bangladesh and denied committing any war crime or atrocities during the 1971 war of independence.
It also rejected as ‘baseless and unfounded assertions’ of Bangladesh against Pakistan.
“Nothing could be further from the truth,” A Pakistan Foreign Ministry press release said.
“It is regrettable that attempts have been made by the Government of Bangladesh to malign Pakistan, despite our ardent desire to develop brotherly relations with Bangladesh. Pakistan believes that the peoples of both countries not only want to maintain but also further strengthen the bonds of friendship and brotherhood. However, sadly, the Government of Bangladesh does not seem to respect these sentiments.”
Pakistan said the 1974 tripartite agreement is the bedrock of relations between the two countries.
“As regards the Bangladesh Government's contention that Pakistan presents a misleading interpretation of the Agreement of 1974, it needs to be emphasized that, as part of the Agreement, the Government of Bangladesh had "decided not to proceed with the trials as an act of clemency."
“Pakistan reiterates its desire for further enhancing relations with Bangladesh, because we believe that the hearts of the people of Pakistan beat in unison with the people of Bangladesh. It is important for the two countries not to forget the role played by their people in the struggle for the establishment of a separate homeland for the Muslims of the South Asian sub-continent, the release further read.

“It is, therefore, imperative to move forward in the spirit of goodwill, friendship and harmony for the collective good of the peoples of Pakistan and Bangladesh,” the statement added.

Bangladesh executes opposition chiefs

BBC Nws 

Two Bangladesh opposition leaders have been executed for war crimes committed during the 1971 independence struggle against Pakistan.

Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid were hanged in Dhaka's central jail.
They were convicted of genocide and rape - charges they denied.
Chowdhury has been an influential politician - he was elected MP six times. Mujahid was a top leader of Bangladesh's largest Islamist party.
They were hanged after President Abdul Hamid rejected appeals for clemency by the two men, the home minister said.
The Supreme Court upheld their sentences earlier this month.
Chowdhury was the most senior leader of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party to be sentenced for crimes against humanity.
Two years ago, a special war crimes tribunal found him guilty of nine out of 23 charges including genocide, arson and persecuting people on religious and political grounds.
Mujahid was the secretary-general of Jamaat-e-Islami. He was sentenced to death in July 2013.
He was accused of responsibility for the killings of a number of pro-independence Bangladeshi leaders and intellectuals.

The tribunal found him guilty of five charges, including abduction and murder.

SQ Chy didn’t seek mercy, son tells after meeting father

Hummam Quader Chowdhury enters Dhaka Central Jail this morning to meet his father, war criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury. Photo: Star

Star Online Report

War criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury did not seek presidential clemency, claimed his son Hummam Quader.
SQ Chowdhury denied filing any mercy plea, Hummam Quader told reporters after coming out. “He (SQ Chowdhury) said: ‘Who says such rubbish? I didn’t seek any mercy.’”
Eighteen members of SQ Chowdhury’s family, including his wife Farhat Quader and two sons Fazlul Quader and Hummam Quader, went inside and stayed for over an hour.

President rejects mercy petitions of Mojaheed, SQ Chy

Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury

Star Online Report

President Abdul Hamid has rejected mercy petitions of death row war criminals Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal has said.
“The President has rejected the two convicts’ mercy plea and we have got the order through the home secretary,” the minister told The Daily Star at 9:50pm.
“Since the pleas have been turned down, we are taking preparation to execute the death sentence,” he added.
Both the convicts have been kept at the Dhaka Central Jail, where preparation has been going on for the execution.
Law Secretary Abu Saleh Sk Md Zahirul Haque reach Bangbhaban, the office-cum-residence of the president at 8:05pm with the petitions – the last resort of the two condemned war criminals to avoid execution.
Earlier, the petitions were taken to home and law ministers for the opinion.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told The Daily Star this afternoon that the petitions reached his desk around 2:30pm.

He said the petitions, labeled “Appeal for mercy” on top, were being sent to the Prime Minister’s Office after being viewed by law minister – when The Daily Star called him around 5:00pm.
Around 7:30pm, the law minister held a press briefing at his Gulshan residence where he asserted that the mercy pleas were filed in accordance with Article 49 of the Constitution – the section relating to the presidential clemency.
As part of heightened security measures, authorities have decided to deploy paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in Dhaka and Chittagong from 6:30pm this evening.

Security has been tightened around the Dhaka Central Jail gate. Photo: Rafiul Islam.

Security around Dhaka Central Jail and adjoining areas was heightened. A large number of law enforcers including police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and prison guards were deployed.
All shops and establishments around the jail area were ordered to shut by 8:00pm. Onlookers were asked to clear the area. The road leading to jail from Chawkbazar was closed around 7:40pm.
Meanwhile, family and lawyers of SQ Chowdhury and Mojaheed were still dubious on whether the mercy petitions were filed at all, after the law minister’s confirmation earlier today.
Around 5:20pm, Hummam Quader Chowdhury, SQ Chowdhury’s son, told reporters he was denied to meet his father at Dhaka Central Jail. “We don’t know yet if he filed mercy petition.”
“We don’t believe that our father filed for mercy,” said Fazlul Quader Fayaz, his other son. Mojaheed’s son Ali Ahmed Mabrur echoed similar words.
SQ Chowdhury’s family also tried to move a letter to President Abdul Hamid where they highlighted the international community’s “opinion” on the trial of the BNP leader.
Earlier in the day, two magistrates went to Dhaka jail to inquire whether SQ Chowdhury and Mojaheed would seek mercy from the president.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman told The Daily Star they did hand a mercy plea to the magistrates.
Yesterday, the authorities asked Mojaheed and Salauddin whether they would seek presidential clemency, the last option for the two convicts to avoid gallows. Both of them had said they would inform the prisons officials about their decision later.
A day after delivering verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday released its full verdicts that dismissed Mojaheed and Chowdhury’s petitions to review their death sentences originally handed down by two war crimes tribunals in 2013.
Later, jail officials read out the SC verdicts to the war crimes convicts.

Security beefed up across Bangladesh

BGB personnel patrolling a street in Chittagong, the home district of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury. Security has been ramped up in the city ahead of the condemned war criminal's execution in Dhaka Central Jail last night. Photo: Anurup Kanti Das

Star Report

Security was beefed up further in the capital and elsewhere yesterday in a bid to prevent any act of sabotage centring on the execution of war criminals Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury.
Vehicles were not allowed since the afternoon to ply the roads going to Dhaka Central Jail where the two convicts had been kept.
The police and Rapid Action Battalion personnel remained vigilant on Dhaka roads and near the jail. Law enforcers were also seen on the roofs of buildings around the jail.
Besides, platoons of Boarder Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed in major cities, including Dhaka, Chittagong and Rajshahi last evening.
The measures were taken hours after Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said Salauddin and Mojaheed had pleaded for presidential clemency.
Their long legal battles ended on Wednesday as the Supreme Court dismissed their appeals for review of the verdicts upholding their death penalty handed down by the International Crimes Tribunals in 2013.
Twenty platoons of BGB deployed in the capital were to remain on duty until this morning, said Mohsin Reza, public relations officer at the BGB headquarters in Dhaka.

Debdas Bhattacharya, additional commissioner (crime and operation) of Chittagong Metropolitan Police, said additional forces had been deployed across the city to prevent subversive activities.
Sixteen teams of special riot force of the police were deployed in the port city, he said, adding they would be on the alert for any untoward incident and conduct raids in different areas.  
Additional forces were also deployed in different upazilas of Chittagong district, said Muhammad Naimul Hasan, additional superintendent of police (special branch) in Chittagong.
A total of 15 platoons of BGB were deployed in Chittagong division around 6:00pm yesterday.
Of those, six platoons in Chittagong city, two each in Lohagara, Satkania and Raozan upazilas and three in Cox's Bazar district, said Lt Col Emarat Hossain, commanding officer of 28 BGB Battalion.
They will be on guard until further instructions, he added.
In Rajshahi, seven platoons of BGB were deployed in the evening, reports our Rajshahi correspondent.
The police were on the alert on roads and in different areas while reserve forces had been kept ready for deployment, said Sushanto Chandra Roy, spokesperson of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police.

Two Hanged, Together

SQ Chy, Mojaeed walked separate gallows; jail authorities go for quick execution after president rejects clemency petitions of war criminals

Staff Correspondent

Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed were hanged early today for committing crimes against humanity during the country's Liberation War.
The two walked the gallows around 12:55am together at Dhaka Central Jail amid tight security, Brig Gen Syed Iftekhar Uddin, inspector general (prisons), told The Daily Star.
The death sentences of Salauddin and Mojaheed, both former ministers, were executed three days after the Supreme Court dismissed his petition to review his capital punishment, originally handed down by two war crimes tribunal in 2013.
Salauddin, self-proclaimed brigadier of Chittagong in 1971, was not involved in politics in 1971, but he actively took part in the election campaign of his father Fazlul Quader Chowdhury, the then president of anti-liberation Convention Muslim League in 17970.
During the war, Salauddin, along with his men and Pakistani occupation forces, unleashed a cold-blooded savagery on five Raozan villages in Chittagong, killing 111 Hindu men. His father and he blamed the Hindu men for his father's defeat in 1970.
Salauddin did not even spare Nutan Chandra Sinha, a social worker and philanthropist. He and his men killed Nutan, dragging him out of a temple where he was praying at the time. He also accompanied the Pakistan army men when the abducted Awami League leader Mozaffar Ahmed and his son, who were later found dead.
Turing their Goods Hill house as a torture centre, Salauddin and his men tortured freedom fighters and pro-liberation people during the war.
After the war, he fled to London, but returned in 1974. Like Mojaheed, he joined politics after 1975 political changeover and became lawmakers several times. He even became a minister during the Ershad regime.
Mojaheed was the president of Islami Chhatra Sangha, the then Jamaat-e-Islami's student wing towards the last part of 1971 and became chief of infamous Al-Badr Bahini.
During the nine-month war, being the chief of the Chhatra Sangha and Al-Badr, Mojaheed visited many districts and held meetings with his followers to instigate them in annihilating freedom fighters as well as pro-liberation people.
And towards the end of the Liberation War, Al-Badr men, under his leadership, traced houses, systematically rounded up, tortured and brutally killed the brightest luminaries -- professors, litterateurs, journalists and doctors -- to cripple the country intellectually once and for all.
After independence, Mojaheed went into hiding and resurfaced after the political changeover in the country with the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. In time, his political clout grew, and he even became minister of the country whose birth he whole-heartedly opposed and tried to resist.
Their executions came after the president turned down the mercy petitions by both the convicts.
Around 8:30pm, the jail authorities called family members of the two to meet the Salauddin and Mojaheed. The family members went to the Dhaka Central Jail around 9:15pm, lawyers for both the convicts said.
Earlier in the afternoon, the two sought presidential mercy, the last option to avoid gallows, through the jail authorities who in turn sent the petitions to the home ministry.
From the home ministry, the petitions were forwarded to the law ministry and then to the president through the Prime Minister's Office, sources said.
Security was tight throughout the day around the Dhaka Central Jail where the two convicts were kept, and it was further beefed up in the evening when additional police and Rab and members were deployed.
All shops and establishments around the jail area were ordered to shut down by 8:00pm and onlookers were asked to clear the area. The road leading to the prison from Chawkbazar was closed around 7:40pm. Only journalists were allowed to pass through the area to go near the jail gate, that too after verifying their ID cards.
The countdown of their execution began after the Supreme Court dismissed their review petitions on Wednesday. Family members of both the death-row convicts met them at Dhaka Central Jail the following day.
Since yesterday morning, there were unconfirmed reports about their possible execution last night. There was also confusion as to whether they sought presidential mercy.
Around 10:00am, two executive magistrates went inside the jail to know whether Salauddin and Mojaheed would seek mercy from President Abdul Hamid.
Families of both the convicts held separate press conference where they expressed doubt that the two sought clemency.
At the press conference at Supreme Court Bar Association auditorium around 12:00noon, Mojaheed's family members indirectly requested the president to halt the execution until the end of the trial of August 21 grenade attack case, in which the Jamaat leader is an accused.
Salauddin's family members said he would convey his decision on seeking presidential clemency only when he meets his lawyers.
Later around 2:45pm, Law Minster Anisul Huq confirmed that the two indeed sought presidential mercy.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal also confirmed that both Mojaheed and Salauddin conveyed their decision to seek mercy in front of the two magistrates.
The mercy petitions reached his desk around 2:30pm, the minister told this newspaper around 5:00pm.
He said the petitions, labelled “Appeal for mercy” on top, were then being sent to the Prime Minister's Office.
But Hummam Quader Chowdhury, Salauddin's son, told reporters he was not allowed to meet his father at the jail. “We don't know yet if he filed any mercy petition.”
“We don't believe that our father sought mercy,” said Fazlul Quader Fayaz, his other son. Mojaheed's son Ali Ahmed Mabrur said the same.
Salauddin's family also tried to submit a letter to the president where they highlighted the international community's “opinion” on the trial of the BNP leader.
Jamaat-e-Islami also claimed that the reports that Mojaheed filed for presidential clemency was “absolutely untrue”.
In a statement sent to the media at 2:50pm yesterday, Jamaat acting secretary general Shafiqur Rahman called upon all concerned not to spread “confusing and dirty propaganda” before the Dhaka Central Jail authorities issued its official statement on this.
“Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed didn't say anything regarding seeking clemency when his family visited him in jail. Family members told media that he wants to consult his lawyers about next course of action,” the statement reads.
Around 8:05pm, Law Secretary Abu Saleh Sk Md Zahirul Haque reached Bangabhaban, the office-cum-residence of the president, with the petitions.
Around 7:30pm, the law minister held a press briefing at his Gulshan residence where he asserted that the mercy pleas were filed in accordance with Article 49 of the Constitution -- the section relating to the presidential clemency.

SQ Chy, Mojaheed hanged

Dhaka Central Jail from the front ahead of execution of two top war criminals SQ Chy and Mojaheed. Photo: Palash Khan.

Star Online Report

Two men, who tried their best – carrying out genocide and assassinating intellectuals and professionals – to stop birth of Bangladesh 44 years ago, have met their end inside Dhaka jail.
Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed were executed at 12:55am today, after a long trial process that began with their arrest almost five years ago.

Also READ: President rejects mercy petitions of Mojaheed, SQ Chy
“The two were executed simultaneously,” Inspector General (Prisons) Brig Gen Syed Iftekhar Uddin, confirmed The Daily Star.

Their bodies would be handed over to their families for burial in their village home. Chowdhury will be buried at his family graveyard in Chittagong while Mojaheed in his home village in Faridpur.
Mojaheed, who was the chief of infamous Al-Badr Bahini in 1971, is the first person, who had the national flag of Bangladesh hoisted in his car as a minister, to be hanged by the court of the country.

While law enforcers put up layers of security around Dhaka Central Jail amid heightened alert, paramilitary force Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed in the capital, Dhaka, and Chittagong to ward off any violence.
With the execution of the two, total four individuals were executed for crimes against humanity committed during the country’s 1971 bloody war of independence.
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The process to carry out the execution of the two top war criminals – Chowdhury, a standing committee member of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and Mojaheed, secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami – were finalised after 9:45pm yesterday when the president turned down the convicts’ petition for clemency.
The authorities of Dhaka Central Jail contacted families of Mojaheed and Chowdhury around 8:00pm, asking them to meet the two convicts in jail.
Dhaka Deputy Commissioner Tofazzal Hossain Mia and additional IG of Prisons Fazlul Kabir are inside the jail. IG of Prisons Brig Gen Syed Iftekhar Uddin was also inside for a while.
Also, Dhaka Jam-e-mosque Imam Monir Hossain and district Civil Surgeon Abdul Maleque Mridha are also inside the jail, showing evident signs of imminent execution.
Eighteen members of SQ Chowdhury’s family, including his wife Farhat Quader and two sons Fazlul Quader and Hummam Quader, went inside and stayed for over an hour.
SQ Chowdhury denied filing any mercy plea, Hummam Quader told reporters after coming out. “He (SQ Chowdhury) said: ‘Who says such rubbish? I didn’t file any mercy.’”
Around eight members of Mojaheed’s family arrived at Dhaka jail gates around 10:26pm. They waited around before entering the jail at 10:58pm yesterday.
Four ambulances went inside the Dhaka jail at 12:35am today immediately after the family members of Mojaheed came out from the jail.
Security around Dhaka Central Jail and adjoining areas was heightened. A large number of law enforcers including police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and prison guards were deployed.
All shops and establishments around the jail area were ordered to shut by 8:00pm. Onlookers were asked to clear the area. The road leading to jail from Chawkbazar was closed around 7:40pm.
The long legal battles in the war crimes cases against Mojaheed and SQ Chowdhury finally came to an end on November 18 when the Supreme Court dismissed their petitions for reviewing its verdict that upheld their death penalty given by two special tribunals in 2013.
Salauddin, a self-proclaimed brigadier in 1971, was sentenced to death in October that year for committing crimes against humanity and acts of genocide in Chittagong in 1971.
He was given death penalty on four charges – the killing of philanthropist Natun Chandra Sinha, murders of Awami League leader Mozaffar Ahmed and his son, and two acts of genocide in Sultanpur Banikpara and Unasattarpara in Raozan of Chittagong.
The BNP leader was given 20 years in jail each on two charges and five years' imprisonment each on two other charges.
Mojaheed was handed down death penalty in July 2013 for planning and instigating the killing of intellectuals and professionals at the fag end of the Liberation War.
He was given life sentence on two other charges, and five years' imprisonment on one.
Both convicts filed review petitions on October 14 this year after the SC upheld their death penalty. On November 18, a four-member SC bench headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha dismissed both petitions.
Earlier, two war crimes convicts – Jamaat leaders Abdul Quader Mollah and Muhammad Kamaruzzaman – were executed since the war crimes trial began in March 2010.
Quader Mollah was hanged hours after the jail authorities received a short SC order on his review petition on December 12, 2013, while Kamaruzzaman was executed on April 11 this year after the prison authorities got the full SC order on his review petition.

CASE DETAILS
SQ CHOWDHURY
Law enforcers arrested Salauddin on December 16, 2010 at Banani in the capital in connection with torching a car in Moghbazar on June 26. He was shown arrested on December 19 following a warrant issued by the tribunal.
On October 1, 2013, the tribunal found Salauddin, now 66, guilty of nine of the 23 charges brought against him of committing crimes against humanity.
He was handed death penalty for four charges – involvement in the killing of Natun Chandra Singha, Awami League leader Mozaffar Ahmed and his son; and genocide in Raozan.
The SC upheld his capital punishment in July after hearing his appeal against the verdict delivered by the International Crimes Tribunal-1.
The International Crimes Tribunal issued death warrant for him on October 1, a day after the Supreme Court released its full verdict of the appeal hearing.
Chowdhury, on October 14, filed the review petition to the SC seeking acquittal on all the charges levelled against him.
While turning down his review petition on November 18, the apex court said the documents submitted by Chowdhury on his study at a Panjab University in 1971 were not acceptable. There are many anomalies in the statement of the university certificates given by a professor to Chowdhury, the court said.
MOJAHEED
On June 21, 2012, Mojaheed was indicted for planning to kill intellectuals just before Bangladesh's liberation on December 16, 1971.
On July 17, 2013, the International Crimes Tribunal-2 found Mojaheed guilty of abducting and killing journalist Serajuddin Hossain. But the court did not give any separate sentence for this, as the offence was merged with those of the killings of intellectuals and professionals, for which the tribunal awarded him the death penalty.
The tribunal had also given Mojaheed death penalty for mass killings at Bakchar village in Faridpur, but the SC commuted his death sentence to life term on this charge.
The International Crimes Tribunal issued death warrants for the Jamaat leader on October 1, a day after the SC released the full verdicts.
On October 14, Mojaheed moved a petition to review the death penalty.
After hearing, the Supreme Court, on November 18, rejected his plea to review its previous ruling and upheld death penalty.

“Spanish guitars sell the best”

Visiting the musical instrument market

Despite demands for Western instruments, the shops have ample stock of traditional ones. Photo: Sheikh Mehedi Morshed

Staff Correspondent

Music holds a fascination for the younger generation, and many are always on the lookout for good musical instruments. The Daily Star recently spoke to Gopal Ray, who has been working at a musical instrument shop New Surasree at Mirpur Road for long. He talked about the market for musical instruments and more. Excerpts:
What is the most popular instrument at the moment?
Gopal Ray: The Spanish guitar is the most sought-after musical instrument as youngsters love to play it. Most of our customers are amateur musicians who scout for all sorts of guitars.
What other instruments do you have in your shop?
Gopal Ray: We sell all kinds of musical instruments. We keep everything, starting from guitars to tanpura, trumpets, sitars, sarod, surmandal and harmoniums. The starting price of guitars is Taka 1800 taka. We also have expensive guitars of renowned brands. Harmoniums go from Taka 9,000- 60,000, while flutes start from Taka 350.
We also have a large array of folk instruments including ektara, dotara, khamak, mondira, dhol, tabla, banshi and shanai.
Folk instruments are being modernised as they are being used by young musicians. Instruments like flute, dotara, khamak and mondira are widely used as well.
However, the shanai is almost on its way out in Bangladesh as there are a handful of shanai players left.
How do you collect these instruments?
Gopal Ray: We import most of our instruments from India, Europe and America. And for folk instruments, local guitars, tabla and harmoniums, we have our own factory in Rishipara, Narayanganj. Making musical instruments is tough, and requires expertise.
What's the present market scenario?
Gopal Ray: Despite a downturn in the audio market, our business is steady. However, we are yet to recover fully from the losses we suffered during last year's political instability. Once there used to be concerts in every corner of the city, but the trend has reversed. Now there are more live shows on television and radio, and a small number of indoor shows.

BGB deployed in Dhaka, Ctg

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is deployed in Dhaka for 12 hours to maintain security in the capital. Star file photo.

Star Online Report

A total of 35 platoons of Border Guard Bangladesh men have been deployed in Dhaka and Chittagong this evening to maintain security.
The decision came hours after Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan claimed that war criminals Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed pleaded for presidential clemency. However, family and lawyers of SQ Chowdhury and Mojaheed were still dubious on whether the mercy petitions were filed at all, after the law minister’s confirmation.
The home minister told The Daily Star that the petitions, the last hope for the two top war criminals, reached his desk around 2:30pm.
“Twenty platoons of BGB men will be deployed from 6:30pm across Dhaka to maintain law and order,” Mohsin Reza, BGB’s public relations office told The Daily Star when he was contacted following the decision of BGB deployment.
Meanwhile, Lt Col Emarot Hossain of BGB 28 Battalion confirmed that 15 platoons of BGB have been deployed at Chittagong city, Raujan, Sitakunda and Lohagara of the district.
The troops will remain deployed in the district until further instructions, the BGB official added.

Mercy pleas on way to PMO: Home minister

 

Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury

Star Online Report

Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed’s mercy pleas are now on way to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) before they reache the president.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told The Daily Star this afternoon that the petitions, the last hope for the two top war criminals, reached his desk around 2:30pm.
He said the petitions, labeled “Appeal for mercy” on top, were being sent to the Prime Minister’s Office after viewed by Law Minister Anisul Huq – when The Daily Star called him around 5:00pm.
As part of heightened security measures, authorities have decided to deploy paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in Dhaka and Chittagong from 6:30pm this evening.
Security around Dhaka Central Jail and adjoining areas was heightened. A large number of law enforcers including police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and prison guards were deployed.
Meanwhile, family and lawyers of SQ Chowdhury and Mojaheed were still dubious on whether the mercy petitions were filed at all, after the law minister’s confirmation earlier today.
READ more: Waiting for mercy plea decisions
Around 5:20pm, Hummam Quader Chowdhury, SQ Chowdhury’s son, told reporters he was denied to meet his father at Dhaka Central Jail. “We don’t know yet if he filed mercy petition.”
“We don’t believe that our father filed for mercy,” said Fazlul Quader Fayaz, his other son.
Earlier in the day, two magistrates went to the Dhaka Central Jail to know whether the two top war criminals – Mojaheed of Jamaat-e-Islami and Chowdhury of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) – would seek presidential mercy.
Yesterday, the authorities asked Mojaheed and Salauddin whether they would seek presidential clemency, the last option for the two convicts to avoid gallows. Both of them had said they would inform the prisons officials about their decision later.
A day after delivering verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday released its full verdicts that dismissed Mojaheed and Chowdhury’s petitions to review their death sentences originally handed down by two war crimes tribunals in 2013.
Later, jail officials read out the SC verdicts to the war crimes convicts.

President, PM pay homage to armed forces’ martyrs

UNB, Dhaka

President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina paid homage to members of Bangladesh Armed Forces, who made supreme sacrifices in the Liberation War in 1971, on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day today.
The president, also the Supreme Commander of Armed Forces, placed wreaths at the altar of Shikha Anirban (eternal flame) at 8:00am and stood in solemn silence for some time as a mark of respect to memories of the martyrs.
A smartly turned out contingent of the army, the navy and the air force presented a salute on the occasion. Later, President Abdul Hamid signed the visitors’ book on the premises of the Shikha Anirban.
The prime minister paid the homage by placing a wreath at Shikha Anirban (flame eternal) at Dhaka Cantonment.
After laying the wreath, she stood there in solemn silence for some time as a mark of respect to the memories of the martyrs.
A smartly-turned out contingent drawn from the Army, Navy and Air Force presented a guard of honour as the bugle played the last post. Later, the prime minister, also in-charge of the Ministry of Defence, signed the visitors' book on the Shikha Anirban premises.
Earlier on her arrival, the chiefs of the three services and the principal staff officer (PSO) of the Armed Forces Division received the prime minister.

After the wreath-placing ceremony, Hasina went to the Armed Forces Division (AFD) where the chiefs of the three services made a courtesy call on her.

On her arrival at the AFD, the premier was received by the PSO and directors generals of the AFD.
On this day during the War of Liberation in 1971, the Bangladesh Armed Forces comprising Army, Navy and Air Force, came into being and launched an all-out attack on the Pakistani occupation forces.
Since the country's independence, this historic day is observed as the Armed Forces Day every year.

Babar at DMCH for checkup

Ex-state minister Lutfozzaman Babar is among the 32 indicted for the murder case of Awami League leader and former finance minister SAMS Kibria. Prothom Alo file photo

Star Online Report

Former state minister for home Lutfozzaman Babar has been taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) for medical checkup following an order of a Sylhet court dealing with former finance minister SAMS Kibria murder case.
The jail authorities along with Babar, an accused in former finance minister SMA Kibria murder case, started from Kashimpur Jail-1 in Gazipur for DMCH around 8:00am, said Subrata Kumar Bala, jail super of the jail.
“Babar has been taken to hospital in compliance with a Sylhet court order,” Bala said.
The Sylhet Speedy Trial Tribunal on Thursday asked the Kashimpur jail authorities for his check up following an appeal submitted by Babar through his lawyer, said Kishore Kumar Kar, public prosecutor of the tribunal.
On September 13, the tribunal framed 32 people including Babar in the murder case of the Awami League leader.
The then opposition lawmaker and Awami League leader Kibria and four others were killed in a grenade attack on a rally in Habiganj on January 27, 2005.
Babar is also a death row convict in Chittagong arms haul case filed for smuggling in 10 truckloads of firearms in 2004.

SQ Chy to inform lawyers on mercy plea

Farhat Quader Chowdhury, wife of war criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, tells reporters that he husband will convey his decision on seeking presidential clemency after meeting his lawyers. She was speaking at a press briefing organised by BNP in Dhaka on Saturday. Photo: TV grab

Star Online Report

Condemned war criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury will convey his decision on seeking presidential clemency when he meets his lawyers, his wife Farhat Quader Chowdhury said today.
Farhat came up with the remark at a press briefing just after BNP standing committee member Goyeshwar Chandra Roy, at the same programme, said Chowdhury will not seek presidential mercy.
Meanwhile, Hummam Quader Chowdhury, younger son of the war criminal, told reporters that his father earlier told them that he will decide on the issue after talking with his lawyers.
“So, the family will be able to know about the decision when lawyers meet my father,” Hummam said.
But the lawyers were not allowed to meet Chowdhury, the son claimed.
"How can we say that the two magistrates who went to meet my father at the jail will speak the truth, he questioned.
BNP organised the briefing at the party’s chief’s Gulshan office in Dhaka.
According to a press release, today’s briefing was supposed to be conducted by Jamir Uddin Sircar, another standing committee member of the party, but he did not attend the programme.
Yesterday, the authorities asked Mojaheed and Salauddin whether the two would seek the mercy, the last option for them to avoid gallows. Both of them said they would inform the prison officials about their decision later.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court released its full verdicts that dismissed their petitions to review their death sentences originally handed down by two war crimes tribunals in 2013.
Later, jail officials read out the SC verdicts to the war crimes convicts.

Paris attack: UN backs 'all necessary measures' against IS

France says 130 people died in last week's attacks on a number of sites - including this cafe - in Paris. Photo: AP

BBC Online

The UN Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution to "redouble" action against Islamic State, following last week's deadly attacks in Paris.
The French-drafted document urges UN members to "take all necessary measures" in the fight against IS.
IS said it carried out the Paris attacks, in which 130 people died.

Also READ: 'That's for Paris' killings
It also claimed deadly bombings in Lebanon this month, while an IS-linked group said it downed a Russian passenger plane in October.
The UN resolution 2249 also condemns recent attacks in Sousse, Tunisia, and Ankara, Turkey.

Unanimous #UNSC vote for France's counter ISIL resolution: a clear, United, call for action @UKUN_NewYork @franceonu pic.twitter.com/tY2oFHiZet

— Peter Wilson (@PeterWilson) November 20, 2015

Adopting resolution, #UNSC calls for eradicating ISIL safe havens in #Syria & #Iraq https://t.co/0ikwwE7kTc pic.twitter.com/8ApvDFHrCu

— UN News Centre (@UN_News_Centre) November 20, 2015

It came as the Belgian authorities raised the terror alert to the highest level in the capital Brussels, warning of an "imminent threat".

Some of the Paris attackers had lived in Brussels. The only survivor of the group, Salah Abdeslam, is still on the run and is thought to have gone back there.
The Belgian authorities also announced that a suspect had been charged with involvement in the attacks, bringing the number of people charged there to three.
The UN Security Council called on member states to "eradicate the safe haven" IS and other militant groups had established over parts of Iraq and Syria.
The document also stresses that nations should "redouble and co-ordinate their efforts to prevent and suppress terrorist attacks".
READ more: World to stand united against IS!

However, it does not invoke the UN's Chapter VII, which gives specific legal authorisation for the use of force.
France and Russia have argued that military action is already justifiable because of the right of countries to self-defence.

#Paris: The UN Security Council condemned the "barbaric and cowardly terrorist attacks" https://t.co/nlUuFHLhWQ pic.twitter.com/Jo4sDnk8SB

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 14, 2015

Earlier, French officials said the cousin of the presumed ringleader of the 13 November attacks in Paris did not blow herself up in Wednesday's police raid in Saint-Denis as previously thought.
In an exclusive interview with the BBC, a member of the police assault team involved in the raid said Hasna Ait Boulahcen, 26, was "trying to say she was not linked to the terrorists, that she had nothing to do with them and wanted to surrender".
But he said that due to prior intelligence, "we knew that she was trying to manipulate us".
Officials said the suicide bomber was a man, who - alongside with alleged ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud - was also killed.
In a separate development, French prosecutors said that a second suicide bomber from the Stade de France attack passed through Greece on his way to France.
The prosecutors had previously said one of the other attackers had come on the same route, via the Greek island of Leros. The men may have been posing as Syrian refugees.
Hundreds of people were wounded in the near-simultaneous attacks on Paris bars and restaurants, a concert hall and sports stadium.
Islamic State (IS) said it was behind the attacks - the worst in Europe since the 2004 Madrid bombings.
IS is a notoriously violent Islamist group which controls large parts of Syria and Iraq. It has declared its territory a caliphate - a state governed in accordance with Islamic law - under its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
IS demands allegiance from all Muslims, rejects national borders and seeks to expand its territory. It follows its own extreme version of Sunni Islam and regards non-believers as deserving of death.
IS projects a powerful image, partly through propaganda and sheer brutality, and is the world's richest insurgent group. It has about 30,000 fighters but is facing dail

প্রাণভিক্ষা চাওয়ার খবর অবিশ্বাস্য: সাকা ও মুজাহিদের পরিবার

স্বরাষ্ট্র মন্ত্রণালয় ও কারা কর্তৃপক্ষ সালাউদ্দীন কাদের চৌধুরী ও আলী আহসান মুজাহিদের প্রাণভিক্ষা চাওয়ার যে খবর দিচ্ছে তা অবিশ্বাস্য বলে দাবী করছেন মৃত্যুদণ্ডপ্রাপ্ত এই দুই নেতার পরিবারের সদস্যরা।স্বরাষ্ট্র মন্ত্রণালয়ের একটি সূত্র শনিবার দুপুরে বিবিসিকে জানায় যে, মি. চৌধুরী ও মি. মুজাহিদ রাষ্ট্রপতির কাছে প্রাণভিক্ষা চেয়ে আবেদন জানিয়েছেন।

কিন্তু মি. মুজাহিদের ছেলে আলী আহম্মেদ মাবরুর বিবিসিকে বলেছেন, প্রাণভিক্ষা চাওয়ার যে খবর আসছে সেটি সঠিক নয় বলে তারা মনে করেন।

তিনি আরো বলেন, তারা যখন তার বাবার সঙ্গে দেখা করেছেন তখন তিনি জানিয়েছিলেন যে তিনি প্রাণভিক্ষা চাইবেন না।

এদিকে সালাউদ্দীন কাদের চৌধুরীর স্ত্রী ফারহাত কাদের চৌধুরীও এ খবরটিকে অবিশ্বাস্য বলে বর্ণনা করেছেন।

তিনি বলেন, তারা আইনজীবীর মাধ্যমে দুদিন ধরে মি. চৌধুরীর সাথে দেখা করতে চেষ্টা করছেন কিন্তু ব্যর্থ হচ্ছেন।

মি. চৌধুরীর সাথে দেখা করা গেলে এ বিষয়ক বিভ্রান্তি দূর হতো বলে তিনি উল্লেখ করেন।

এর আগে আজ এক সংবাদ সম্মেলনে মিসেস চৌধুরী বলেন, প্রাণভিক্ষার আবেদন করাটা মি. চৌধুরীর ব্যক্তিগত ব্যাপার। আইনজীবীদের সাথে কথা বলে তিনি নিজেই এ বিষয়ে সিদ্ধান্ত নেবেন।

Mojaheed, SQ Chy seek presidential clemency

Star Online Report

Death row war criminals Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury have sought presidential clemency, the law minister confirmed today.
“They have filed the petitions. But those have yet to reach my office,” Anisul Huq told The Daily Star.
After receiving the petition, the law ministry will send those to the president through the Prime Minister’s Office with opinions, the minister said.
READ more: Waiting for mercy plea decisions
Earlier in the day, two magistrates went to the Dhaka Central Jail to know whether the two top war criminals – Mojaheed of Jamaat-e-Islami and Chowdhury of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) – would seek presidential mercy.
Yesterday, the authorities asked Mojaheed and Salauddin whether they would seek presidential clemency, the last option for the two convicts to avoid gallows. Both of them had said they would inform the prisons officials about their decision later.
A day after delivering verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday released its full verdicts that dismissed Mojaheed and Chowdhury’s petitions to review their death sentences originally handed down by two war crimes tribunals in 2013 Later, jail officials read out the SC verdicts to the war crimes convicts.

Halt Mojaheed’s execution until Aug 21 attack trial ends: Family

It has no merit, says AG

Mojaheed's son Ali Ahmed Mabrur (left), wife Tamanna-E-Jahan (centre) and sister-in-law Sakia Tasnin adress press conference. Photo: Tuhin Shuvra Adhikary

Star Online Report

Family of death row war criminal Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed today urged the president to halt his execution until end of the trial of August 21 grenade attack as he is an accused in the case.
“A case (August 21 grenade attack case) remains pending against my father. We call upon the president to give us the rights to fight a legal battle until end of the case,” said Ali Ahmed Mabrur, son of Mojaheed.

READ more: Mojaheed, SQ Chy seek presidential clemency
The family was addressing a press briefing at Supreme Court Bar Association auditorium this afternoon.
At the briefing, Mojaheed's wife Tamanna-E-Jahan said, “Recording testimonies of witnesses in August 21 grenade attack case is now at the final stage. Mojaheed has the rights to continue legal battle as a citizen of Bangladesh.”
“During a meeting with the family members at the jail on November 19, Mojaheed said he would inquire the president about his position in the grenade attack case after getting copy of the verdict in crimes against humanity cases,” Jahan said.
It would be a violation of human rights if his sentence in a case will be executed despite having another case pending in a special tribunal, she said.

IT HAS NO MERIT: AG

About the demand of Mojaheed’s family, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said a death row convict can only file mercy petition to the president.
The post of president is not a post where an accused can send any such letter, the AG said.
“It’s an attempt to confuse people,” he added.
If an accused in five cases is executed in a case, then the other cases against him/her will be ineffective, Alam said adding that their demand has not merit.