Shapla Chattar Massacre: Trial Begins After 13 Years of Waiting

After 13 years of waiting, a petition has been filed to start the trial over the brutal mass killing of Islamic scholars and innocent madrasa students at Shapla Chattar. The petition blames Ms. Sheikh Hasina and her loyal forces. The Chief Prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal made the plea and held 41 people responsible, including Ms. Sheikh Hasina. After the hearing, the tribunal fixed 16 November to hear the defence.

Yesterday, Thursday, International Crimes Tribunal 2 heard the prosecution and framed charges. The three member tribunal is led by Justice Mr. Nazrul Islam Chowdhury. The other two members are Mr. Md. Manjurul Bachid and Judge Mr. Nur Mohammad Shahriar Kabir. Chief Prosecutor Mr. Mohammad Aminul Islam argued for framing the charges.

In the hearing, Mr. Aminul Islam described the separate formal charges against the 41 accused, including Ms. Sheikh Hasina. He explained the background of the case and raised various matters from the Awami League’s time in power. He also described how Ms. Sheikh Hasina became an autocrat. At the end, he asked the tribunal to frame formal charges and start the trial. The tribunal then fixed 16 November for the defence to speak.

Among the other accused are the then Home Minister Dr. Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir and Presidium member of the banned Awami League Mr. Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim. They also include Joint General Secretary Mr. Mahbubul Alam Hanif and the then Information Minister Dr. Hasan Mahmud. Others named are Dr. Dipu Moni, Joint General Secretary Mr. A F M Bahauddin Nasim and former State Minister Advocate Mr. Mrinal Kanti Das.

The list goes on with Joint General Secretary Mr. Jahangir Kabir Nanak and then Minister Mr. Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya. It also has the then Jubo League Chairman Mr. Omar Faruk Chowdhury and Awami League MP Mr. Salahuddin Mahmud. Convener and spokesperson of Gonojagoron Mancha Dr. Imran H Sarkar is also an accused. So are former IGP Mr. Hasan Mahmud Khandaker, Dr. Mohammad Jabed Patwary, Mr. Benazir Ahmed, former army chief General Mr. Aziz Ahmed and several senior former police officers.

Mr. Aminul Islam brought the first charge over the killing of at least 32 people on 5 May 2013. He says police raided the Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel, Dhaka. The second charge is the killing of 20 people on 6 May of the same year in Siddhirganj, Narayanganj and other places. The third charge is the killing of 5 people in Chattogram and 1 person in Cumilla. The prosecution holds the accused responsible for creating the background of these events and for all of them in the end.

He said the Shapla Chattar killing was a well planned act of the then Awami League government. The charge says that before the operation, a meeting of ministers and senior officials decided to use grenades and lethal weapons to crush Hefazat activists. Under “role of law enforcement,” the charge says senior officers of the then police, RAB and BGB took direct part in carrying out this top level plan.

There are 41 accused in this case, including Ms. Sheikh Hasina. Eleven of them are in jail. They are the then IGP Mr. A K M Shahidul Haque, then ministers Mr. Hasanul Haq Inu, Dr. Dipu Moni, Mr. Abdur Razzak, Mr. Shamsul Haque Tuku and Mr. Ziaul Ahsan, and the then DIG Mr. Abdul Jalil Mondol. Also in jail are the president of Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee Mr. Shahriar Kabir, Ekattor TV Managing Director Mr. Mozammel Babu and the channel’s Chief Reporter Ms. Farzana Rupa.

The other 30, including Ms. Sheikh Hasina, are now on the run. Police brought the 11 jailed accused to the tribunal yesterday for the hearing. The fugitives include the then State Minister Advocate Mr. Mrinal Kanti Das, the then Jubo League Chairman Mr. Omar Faruk Chowdhury and the then RAB Director General Mr. Md. Mokhlesur Rahman. Others are the then army chief General (retd.) Mr. Aziz Ahmed and the then RAB Additional Director General (Operations) Lt. Gen. (retd.) Mr. Mojibur Rahman.

The fugitive list also has the then Additional IGP Mr. Sheikh Muhammad Maruf Hasan and former Additional IGPs (SB) Mr. Mahbub Hossain Makhon and Mr. Monirul Islam. It names the then DMP DC (Headquarters and Administration) Mr. Md. Anwar Hossain and DC (Traffic South) Mr. Ashrafuzzaman. Also named are the then DMP ADC (Motijheel Zone) Mr. S M Mehedi Hasan and the then DIG Mr. Harun or Rashid. It further lists former DIG Mr. Biplob Kumar Sarkar, former DIG Super Mr. Syed Nurul Islam and the then DMP ADC (Motijheel Division) Mr. Md. Asaduzzaman. The last names are retired Additional Superintendent of Police Mr. S M Shibli Noman and the then Officer in Charge of Motijheel Police Station Mr. B M Forman Ali.

Earlier, on 3 September, Tribunal 2 ordered notices in two national dailies asking the 30, including Ms. Sheikh Hasina, to surrender. Law enforcers visited their permanent and temporary addresses but could not find them. They then filed a non execution report (NER) with the prosecution. The accused did not surrender, so on 16 September the tribunal declared the 30 fugitives. It ordered the state to appoint lawyers for them. It also fixed yesterday for the hearing on framing formal charges.

On 27 July, Tribunal 2 took note of the formal charges that the prosecution filed against the 41 accused. It ordered warrants for the fugitives and ordered the jailed accused to appear before it. Of the two charges in this widely discussed case, the first covers the killing of 32 people at Shapla Chattar in Dhaka on 5 May 2013. The second covers killings on 6 May in various places, including 20 in Siddhirganj, Narayanganj, 5 in Chattogram and 1 in Cumilla.

Judicial timeline: After the investigation ended, the tribunal fixed 1 November for the hearing on framing formal charges. Among the 11 jailed accused, former IGP Mr. A K M Shahidul Haque could not appear that day because of illness. Because of his absence and the prosecution’s plea for time, the tribunal moved the hearing to 12 November.

A long wait for justice: The events took place on 5 and 6 May 2013, 13 years ago. Devout people and Islamic scholars of the country have waited more than a decade for justice for this tragic event. On 5 May 2013, lakhs of leaders and activists of Hefazat-e-Islam, a non political organisation, gathered at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel.

The Hasina government of that time gave no answer to the demands raised at the rally, so the rally went on. Night fell on 5 May. Under then DMP Commissioner Mr. Benazir Ahmed, police launched a bloody operation called “Operation Flush Out.” Terror fell over Motijheel and Shapla Chattar in the dark of night. The operation aimed to remove a peaceful sit in. Hefazat and people from many walks of life demand justice for this brutality and crime against humanity, carried out through the state machinery.

According to a report by the rights group “Odhikar,” law enforcers attacked in a terrible crackdown named “Operation Flush Out” at Shapla Chattar. Odhikar says 61 Hefazat-e-Islam members were martyred. Odhikar later published the names and identities of the dead. Because Odhikar published this report, the Awami League government filed a case against its then Secretary Mr. Adilur Rahman Khan and Director Mr. A S M Nasir Uddin Elan. The case came under section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act, 2006 (amended 2009). During the Awami government, the court announced a jail sentence against them.

The previous Awami League government took a strict position that no information on the dead and injured at Shapla Chattar should reach the public. After Ms. Sheikh Hasina fled to India in the July uprising of 2024, people demanded a trial for the mass killing at Shapla Chattar. On 12 March 2025, a case was filed at the International Crimes Tribunal over murder, torture and crimes against humanity. Advocate Mr. Azizul Haque Islamabadi went to the Chief Prosecutor’s office on behalf of Hefazat-e-Islam leaders Mr. Junaed Al Habib and Maulana Mamunul Haque to file the complaint.

After the filing, Maulana Mamunul Haque said they had filed the complaint. He said the prosecution would now collect information and bring the case. He said they have enough information and data. Another complaint on the same matter was filed with the tribunal on behalf of Hefazat-e-Islam Joint Secretary General Mufti Harun Izhar.

The complaint names Ms. Sheikh Hasina, who was removed from power, and Gonojagoron Mancha spokesperson Mr. Imran H Sarkar. Other accused include former Home Minister Mr. Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir, former State Minister for Home Mr. Shamsul Haque Tuku and Major General (retd.) Mr. Ziaul Ahsan. They also include former IGPs Mr. Hasan Mahmud Khandaker, Mr. Benazir Ahmed and Mr. A K M Shahidul Haque, and former DIG Mr. Molla Nazrul Islam.

Mr. Mamunul Haque’s complaint names Ms. Sheikh Hasina and Awami League General Secretary Mr. Obaidul Quader. It names the then Minister Mr. Rashed Khan Menon and former Dhaka South City Corporation Mayor Mr. Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh. It names the then Minister Mr. Hasan Mahmud, former MP Mr. Haji Selim and former Prime Minister’s adviser Mr. Salman F Rahman. It names former Narayanganj MP Mr. Shamim Osman and former Prime Minister’s adviser Mr. Tarique Ahmed Siddique. Former IGPs Mr. A K M Shahidul Haque and Mr. Benazir Ahmed and former RAB Additional Director General Mr. Ziaul Ahsan are named too.

The complaint also names DMP Additional Commissioner (DB) Mr. Harun or Rashid and former DMP Deputy Commissioner Mr. Biplob Kumar Sarkar. It names Mr. Shahriar Kabir, president of Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee, and committee member Professor Mr. Muntasir Mamun. It names former International Crimes Tribunal prosecutor Ms. Tureen Afroz and Gonojagoron Mancha convener Mr. Imran H Sarkar. It names former Ekattor TV CEO Mr. Mozammel Haque Babu, former Somoy TV Managing Director and CEO Mr. Ahmed Jobair and ABNews24.com editor Mr. Subhash Singha Roy. The last names are former Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Mr. Nayeemul Islam Khan, former army chief Mr. Aziz Ahmed and Mr. Md. Manzur Ahmed of the NSI.

After the investigation, on 8 December last year, the International Crimes Tribunal received a letter signed by Mr. Fateh Md. Iftekharul Alam, Assistant Director of the investigation agency and investigation officer of the case. The letter says: “On 5 and 6 May 2013, various forces of the former government, Awami League and other party leaders, and armed persons planned a blackout at Shapla Chattar, Motijheel and nearby areas. They then fired indiscriminately at the leaders and activists who had gathered. Genocide and crimes against humanity took place. The complaint received on this is under investigation at the International Crimes Tribunal.”

The letter asks for eight types of information about the operation. These include a certified copy of the DMP’s security plan for the rally. They include the names, ranks and mobile numbers of the drivers of APCs (armored personnel carriers), command vehicles and riot cars used in the operation. The letter also asks for the types of weapons issued for the operation, the bullets and a count of the ammunition used. If any administrative inquiry took place into the firing, it asks for a certified copy of the report. It also asks for copies of the FIR and the police report.

The letter seeks information on all senior DMP officials, including the then Commissioner, and specifically on 10 officers. They are the then ADC (Additional Deputy Commissioner) of Motijheel Division Mr. S M Mehedi Hasan, ADC Mr. Asaduzzaman, ADC Mr. Mohammad Mainul Hasan of Traffic (East) Division and ADC Mr. Monzur Rahman of Ramna Division. They also include ADC Mr. Anwar Hossain, Additional Deputy Commissioner of DB (West) Division Mr. Mashiur Rahman (now in jail), ADC Mr. Nasir Uddin Khan of DB (South), the then DC of Lalbagh Mr. Harun or Rashid, who drew wide attention, and Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mr. Khan Muhammad Rezwan.

Beyond them, the letter asks for information on many others. These are all DMP additional commissioners, joint commissioners and DCs of all divisions including DB. They also include DC Traffic (East), DC (Finance and Budget), DC (E and D), DC (Media), ADC Wari, ADC PRHRD and ADC Procurement. The list goes on with ADCs and ACs of all DB divisions and Assistant Commissioners of the Women Support Centre and Investigation Branch. It includes ACs (Assistant Commissioners) of Motijheel and Khilgaon zones, AC Traffic of Motijheel and Ramna zones, AC Patrol (Motijheel), and OCs of Paltan and Wari police stations. It also covers officers who then served as Inspector (Investigation) at Paltan, Ramna, Hazaribagh, Shabujbagh and Motijheel police stations.