Mir Quasem’s death penalty upheld

The Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the war tribunal’s death sentence awarded to Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Quasem Ali for his crimes against humanity committed during country’s Liberation War in 1971.  

A five-member Appellate Division bench led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha delivered the verdict on Tuesday morning.

The apex court upheld death penalty for Mir Quasem Ali in one charge. However, it acquitted him of three other charges.

Earlier, the court set March 2 for delivering the verdict. However, after a brief period of time, the bench shifted the verdict announcement date to March 8.

On November 2, 2014, the International Crimes Tribunal-2 awarded death penalty to the Jamaat leader for his crimes in Chittagong during the 1971 Liberation War.

On November 30, 2014, the defence lawyers of the war criminal appealed in the apex court challenging the verdict and sought acquittal.