Bangladesh - coup verdict, 34 years on

Court rules killers of founding father Mujib will hang

Article published on the 2009-11-19 Latest update 2009-11-19 08:39 TU

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivers his "This Time The Struggle is for Our Freedom" speech on March 7, 1971
(Photo: WikiMedia Commons)

The Bangladesh Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by five former army officers convicted of killing the nation's founding President, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in a coup more than 34 years ago. The ruling paves the way for the execution of the killers, some 13 years after they first came to trial.

Security was tight in the capital, Dhaka, with more than 12,000 extra police deployed. Around 1,000 people squeezed inside the packed courtroom, while 10,000 more gathered outside to hear the final verdict in a case that has haunted the South Asian nation for decades.

"The Supreme Court has accepted our argument that the five men are guilty and dismissed their appeals. They are going to go to the gallows," said chief state prosecutor Syed Anisul Haque.

Sheikh Mujib, as Rahman is known, led the country to independence in 1971 after a bloody, nine-month war against Pakistan.

He was gunned down at his home, along with his wife and three sons, in a coup on August 15, 1975. His daughters, the current prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her sister Sheikh Rehana, were abroad at the time.

A total of 20 people, including domestic staff, were killed when army officers stormed Sheikh Mujib's house.