A Dhaka court has sentenced six people to death and another to life term imprisonment for the murder of Dhaka Divisional Commissioner’s Office’s administrative officer Aminul Haque Khadem following a dispute over the possession of properties in a shrine.
Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal-4 Judge Abdur Rahman Sardar announced the verdict on Thursday.
The death-row convicts are Shahidur Rahman Khadem, Mahbub Alam Liton, Sheikh Shamim Ahmed, Jewel, Kamal Hossain Biplob and Sohel.
The other convict in the case, fugitive Abdullah Mohammed Nazim Uddin alias Honda Babu, has been fined Tk 20,000 alongside the life imprisonment sentence.
Another suspect in the case named Asgar Hossain Rana has been acquitted after the state failed to prove his involvement in the murder.
Aminul Haque Khadem alias Anis Khadem was shot to death near the capital’s Malibagh Shahi Masjid on May 3, 2009.
The government officer had been serving as the general secretary of Kharampur Mazar Committee (shrine committee) in Brahmanbaria’s Akhaura. He resided with his family in Dhaka’s Basabo area.
According to the case, Shahidur Rahman ordered the killing of Aminul following a spat over the ownership of properties in the shrine.
Aminul’s son Saidul Haque Khadem fild a murder case with the Motijheel Police Station the day after he was killed.
The Rapid Action Battalion, or RAB, subsequently submitted a charge sheet against eight suspects in the case on Nov 30, 2009. The court ordered the commencement of the trial after framing the charges against the accused on Jun 8, 2014.
The court found seven of the accused guilty after hearing the testimonies of 17 witnesses in the case.