The government has backtracked from its decision to form an independent commission to identify the real culprits and masterminds behind the BDR massacre, despite having initially decided to do so.
On Sunday, the home ministry informed the High Court that it would not form any committee regarding the BDR massacre at this time, citing two pending criminal cases with the Appellate Division and a Dhaka Court. Deputy Attorney General Tanim Khan presented a letter from the home ministry to this effect before the High Court bench of Justices Farah Mahbub and Debasish Roy Chowdhury during a hearing on a writ petition filed in this regard.
The High Court bench has scheduled January 5 for passing an order on this issue. Earlier, on December 2, the Attorney General's office informed the High Court bench that the government had initiated the process of forming a national independent committee to identify the real culprits and masterminds behind the killings during the BDR massacre on February 25-26, 2009.
The High Court bench had ordered the government to complete the process and submit a report by December 15. Expressing dissatisfaction over the lack of clarity, the High Court bench on that day directed the state to provide comprehensive information about the commission by December 15.
The court's inquiry follows a public interest writ petition filed last month by Supreme Court lawyers Tanveer Ahmed and Biplab Kumar Poddar. The petition was submitted after the lack of response to a legal notice urging the formation of a National Independent Commission to investigate the incident.
On November 5, the High Court issued a ruling questioning why a commission should not be formed to re-investigate the Pilkhana massacre. The court also instructed the Ministry of Home Affairs to address the application for a re-examination of the case within 10 days.
