British lawyer Graeme L Hall of London’s Doughty Street Chambers has sought Bangladesh Bar Council approval to represent Salman F Rahman in the July Uprising crimes against humanity trial.
Hall’s application was submitted to the Bar Council secretary on Aug 14, while the received copy is dated Aug 24.
Salman’s lawyer Md Asifur Rahman confirmed the matter to bdnews24.com on Sunday.
“Graeme L Hall contacted us in the first week of August and expressed his interest in taking part in the legal proceedings. He then emailed us all the necessary documents and details. We submitted them to the Bar Council secretary. Further proceedings will begin once the Bar Council accepts the application,” he said.
Asifur said permission had initially been obtained from the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on Aug 11.
Following that order, an application was submitted to the Bar Council from jail on behalf of Salman, seeking permission to appoint the foreign lawyer.
Citing Section 11(8) of the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973, Hall has sought permission to appear before the tribunal as a foreign lawyer alongside local counsel.
There is no specific time limit for disposing of the application, lawyer Asifur said.
Earlier, on Dec 10, 2025, senior lawyer Mansurul Haque Chowdhury had applied to the tribunal seeking permission to appoint foreign lawyers for Salman, advisor to former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and former law minister Anisul Huq.
Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam had opposed the application, saying permission from the Bar Council must first be obtained to appoint foreign lawyers.
The tribunal’s then chairman, Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, advised the defence to approach the Bar Council.
The case is currently at the stage of recording evidence, with 11 witnesses having already testified before the tribunal.
On Jan 12 this year, the tribunal ordered the trial to begin after framing five charges against Salman and Anisul. The charges had earlier been taken into cognisance on Dec 4 last year.
The five charges brought by the prosecution include taking policy decisions to suppress the July movement and conspiring to eliminate protesters by imposing a curfew at night following a phone conversation on Jul 19.
The prosecution alleges that, through their continued conspiracy, incitement and provocation, law-enforcing agencies and ruling-party cadres carried out killings in Mirpur on Jul 23 and 28.
They have also been accused of planning the killings of 12 people, including Akash and Setu, in the Mirpur-1 area on Aug 4, and the deaths of another 16 people at different locations in Mirpur on Aug 5 in an effort to thwart the “March to Dhaka” programme of students and the public.
