The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Monday ordered the publication of notices in two national newspapers asking deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan to appear before the tribunal within seven days.
A three-member tribunal led by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder passed the order in a case of crimes against humanity related to the 2024 mass uprising and set June 24 for the next hearing in the case.
The tribunal passed the order after chief prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam had submitted a police report stating that law enforcers had raided the houses of Hasina and Asaduzzaman multiple times but failed to locate them.
Citing newspaper and social media reports, the prosecution said that both聽 Hasina and Asaduzzaman had been in hiding in India to avoid arrest.
The police informed the tribunal that the duo would be produced if arrested later.
Another accused in the case, former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun, is now in jail.
Hours before beginning Monday鈥檚 hearing in the tribunal, Awami League and its associate organisations, whose activities were banned since May 12 pending completion of trials for the July鈥揂ugust atrocities during the student-led mass uprising, held brief processions in the Shahbagh and College Gate areas in the capital.
They demanded the cancellation of the trial against Hasina in the ICT.
On early Monday, a crude bomb exploded near the tribunal gate beside the Bangladesh Shishu Academy.
Shahbagh police station officer-in-charge Khalid Mansur said that the explosion occurred at about 5:25am.
Another unexploded crude bomb was also found there.
鈥榃e are yet to identify the perpetrators,鈥� the OC said.
The police also recovered seven abandoned crude bombs in front of the Medical Centre on the Dhaka University campus, close to the tribunal.
On June 1, during the tribunal鈥檚 first hearing on formal charges against Hasina, Asaduzzaman Khan, and Abdullah Al Mamun, two crude bombs exploded near the tribunal gate.
Hasina, Asaduzzaman, and Mamun face allegations of crimes against humanity for their roles in the crackdown on unarmed demonstrators during the 2024 mass uprising that ousted prime minister Hasina on August 5, 2024.
The tribunal accepted five charges against them, including abetment, instigation, facilitation, conspiracy, and superior responsibility for the violence.
During a two-hour hearing on June 1, chief prosecutor Tajul Islam presented excerpts from the 135-page charge sheet against the trio.
This is the second case filed under the reconstituted tribunal, which was formed by the interim government led by Professor Mohammad Yunus in August 2024.
As of June 16, the Office of the Chief Prosecutor received 339 complaints related to alleged crimes against humanity, according to data from the Tribunal鈥檚 Investigation Agency.
From those, 41 complaints have been selected for detailed investigation.
Formal charges have so far been submitted in two cases, while the Investigation Agency has sought arrest warrants in 30 others.
The prosecutors also said that several hundred complaints involving enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and other serious human rights violations during Hasina鈥檚 15-year rule are still pending investigation.
Prosecutor Tajul Islam said that the Awami League, its affiliated bodies, and the 14-party alliance collectively committed crimes against humanity across the country.
He urged the tribunal to declare these organisations as criminal entities.
The chargesheet identifies Sheikh Hasina as the leader of the alliance.
Prosecutors sought the death penalty or other punishment under the law for Hasina, also the president of Awami League, Asaduzzaman, and Abdullah Al Mamun.
The charges of incitement and abetment accused Hasina of making provocative remarks during a press conference at Ganabhaban on July 14, 2024, which prosecutors say directly led to the crackdown on unarmed students and civilians.
The actions of co-accused Asaduzzaman and Mamun, as well as their subordinates and Awami League activists, are alleged to include abetment, incitement, conspiracy, facilitation, and failure to prevent the crimes.
The second charge relating to extermination accused Hasina of ordering law enforcers to use helicopters, drones, and lethal weapons.
The prosecutors said that her co-accused facilitated and executed the July鈥揂ugust atrocities following her directive.
The third charge relating to the killing of Begum Rokeya University student Abu Sayeed alleged that all three accused ordered and abetted the killing of Abu Sayeed, who was shot in the chest during a protest on July 16, 2024.
The fourth charge accused Hasina, Asaduzzaman, and Mamun of the killing of six demonstrators by law enforcement at Chankharpool on August 5, 2024.
The prosecution said this was part of a systematic crackdown, incited by Hasina鈥檚 public call to use lethal force against protesters.
The fifth charge accused the trio of the gruesome killing of six unarmed protesters near Ashulia police station in Savar.
Five victims were shot and then burned, while one injured protester was burned alive.
Their bodies were allegedly loaded in a pickup van to hide the evidence.