Verdict over Avijit Roy killing today

A tribunal is set to deliver its verdict on Tuesday  in the murder case of writer and founder of Mukto Mona blog Avijit Roy who was killed amid the spate of 'blogger-killings' in 2015.

Judge of Dhaka Anti-Terrorism Tribunal Md Mujibur Rahman will deliver the verdict, reports UNB.

The Tribunal earlier on February 4 fixed the date to deliver the verdict.

Before that the prosecution concluded its argument seeking death penalty of six accused in the murder case of Avijit Roy.

On March 25, 2019, the Bangladesh-born US citizen Avijit’s murder case was transferred to the Anti-Terrorism Tribunal.

On March 14, 2019, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) pressed charges against six people, including sacked Major Syed Mohammad Ziaul Haque, a suspected coordinator of banned militant outfit Ansar-Al-Islam in the case.

 The five other accused are Mozammel Hossain alias Saimon, Abu Siddiq Sohel alias Sakib alias Sajid alias Shahab, Akram Hossain alias Abir, Md Arafat Rahman and Shafiur Rahman Farabi. Of them, Zia and Akram have been on the run.

 Avijit, son of late physicist Ajoy Roy, was hacked to death, but Banya escaped with serious injuries after unidentified assailants attacked them with meat cleavers near TSC on the Dhaka University campus on the evening of February 26, 2015, as they were returning home from the Amor Ekushey Boi Mela.

Avijit’s late father filed a murder case with Shahbagh Police Station the very next day.