SC drops war criminal Abdus Subhan’s appeal challenging death penalty

The Supreme Court today dropped from its record the appeal filed by war criminal Abdus Subhan challenging his death penalty, four days after his death.

This SC order means there is no effectiveness of the appeal at present, defence lawyer Shishir Monir told The Daily Star.

Abdus Subhan, Jamaat-e-Islami leader, died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on February 14.

Today, the Supreme Court declared "abated" the appeal filed after Attorney General Mahbubey Alam and defence lawyer Advocate Joynal Abedin, advocate Shishir Monir informed about the death of Abdus Subhan to the four-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain.

The International Crimes Tribunal on February 18 in 2015 sentenced him to death for committing crimes against humanity, including mass killing, murder, and confinement and torture of pro-liberation people during the 1971 Liberation War.

Jamaat Nayeb-e-Ameer Subhan, who led the anti-liberation elements in Pabna, filed the appeal with the SC challenging his death penalty on March 18 that year.

Arrested on September 20, 2012, the Jamaat leader was indicted on nine charges in December 2013.