All accused, including Tarique Rahman, acquitted in 21st August grenade attack case

In a major development, the High Court of Bangladesh has acquitted all the people accused in the 21st August grenade attack case, including Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of the BNP, and Lutfozzaman Babar, a former state minister. 

The judgment was delivered on Sunday, 1st December, around 11 a.m. by a bench of two judges: Justice A K M Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain.

The court explained that although witnesses described the grenade attack in detail, none of them could identify who actually threw the grenades.

The judges also pointed out that the charge sheet did not include any details about who had supplied the grenades used in the attack on 21st August 2004. The court said this was a key issue in the case.

The hearing for this verdict began at 11 a.m. on Sunday, with Deputy Attorney General Md. Jasim Sarker representing the state. On the other side, the defense team included lawyers SM Shahjahan and Shishir Monir, who represented the accused in the case.

Earlier, the High Court had started hearing the death reference and appeals related to this case on 31st October. Before this, the case had been sent to the bench of Justice A K M Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain for review on 23rd October.

To recap, the grenade attack took place on 21st August 2004, when grenades were thrown at a rally of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Bangabandhu Avenue in Dhaka. 

Following the attack, a case was filed, and in 2018, a special court convicted 19 people, including Lutfozzaman Babar and former Deputy Minister Abdus Salam Pinto, sentencing them to death. 

The court also sentenced 14 people with links to the militant group Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HUJI) to death. Among those sentenced to death, two—Brigadier General (Retd.) Abdur Rahim and former HUJI leader Sheikh Abdus Salam—died in 2021 while receiving medical treatment.

In addition to Tarique Rahman, other senior BNP leaders, such as Haris Chowdhury and Kazi Shah Moazzol Hossain, were given life sentences. 

11 other individuals received varying prison sentences. After the trial court‍‍`s decision, the case was sent to the High Court for further review, and the convicted individuals appealed their sentences.

This ruling marks a significant moment in a case that has been closely followed by the public and legal experts alike.