The prosecution of the International Crimes Tribunal on Tuesday formed a five-member committee to investigate an allegation that a recently resigned prosecutor demanded Tk 1 crore to arrange bail for an Awami League leader accused in a crimes against humanity case.
Chief prosecutor Md Aminul Islam will lead the committee. The other members are prosecutors Md Abdus Sobhan Tarafder, Marjina Raihan (Madina), Mohammad Zahirul Amin and prosecution researcher Sefayet Ullah.
‘We will sit tomorrow (Wednesday) and decide the next course of action,’ Aminul Islam said on Tuesday.
The chief prosecutor also ordered that the nine days’ salary of the resigned prosecutor, Md Saimum Reza Talukder, be withheld. The amount will remain in the custody of the chief prosecutor, and the law, justice and parliamentary affairs ministry will be informed.
The allegation surfaced after two leaked telephone conversations were circulated in several media outlets. In the recordings, Saimum was allegedly heard asking the family of accused ABM Fazle Karim Chowdhury for Tk 1 crore to facilitate his release on bail.
Fazle Karim, a former Awami League lawmaker for a constituency in Chattogram, is an accused in a crimes against humanity case over violence that took place in the port city during the 2024 mass uprising.
Aminul Islam said that he came to know about the issue after watching a news report at home. He immediately asked the prosecutors to attend his office by 9:00am on Tuesday and sought details about the allegation.
He said that Saimum had submitted his resignation two or three days earlier, citing personal reasons, and returned to his teaching position.
Expressing concern over the report, Aminul Islam said that he was hurt by the allegation.
‘If any formal allegation is submitted, I will take action within my legal authority,’ he said, adding that his office would conduct an internal investigation even if no formal complaint was filed.
He also said that an internal committee would review all matters related to the tribunal since its reconstitution after the 2024 mass uprising that ousted the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League regime from power.
‘If any irregularity is found, I will report it to the appropriate authorities. If necessary, I will also speak to my predecessor chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam and prosecutor for administration Gazi Monowar Hossain Tamim,’ he said.
Media reports said that former chief prosecutor Tajul Islam had relieved Saimum of the responsibility of investigating Fazle Karim’s case after being informed about the allegation, but no further action was taken at that time.
‘If even the slightest link with corruption is found against anyone, action will be taken,’ Aminul Islam added.
‘Such an incident, if occurred, would certainly create an image crisis for the tribunal and call into question the integrity of the judicial process,’ he said.
