The High Court (HC) has confirmed the death sentences for 20 individuals and life imprisonment for 5 others in the brutal murder of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) student Abrar Fahad.
The ruling, delivered on Sunday by a bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain, upheld the original verdicts handed down by the trial court.
The Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 had sentenced the convicts on December 8, 2021, and sent the case documents to the High Court for review on January 6, 2022, as required by law for death sentences. The delay in the HC’s review process, which lasted nearly three and a half years, raised concerns of political interference, especially after the fall of the Awami League government.
In February this year, the HC hearing resumed, continuing until February 24.
The charges, as outlined in the police charge sheet, involved 25 members of BUET’s Chhatra League unit—affiliated with the ruling Awami League—who allegedly beat Abrar to death after accusing him of being involved with the Islami Chhatra Shibir, a political rival group. Despite these claims, Chhatra League could not substantiate Abrar’s links to the Shibir. Instead, the brutal attack was reportedly fueled by his critical Facebook posts about Awami League’s dealings with India.
Abrar’s body was found on October 9, 2019, in the Sher-e-Bangla Hall of BUET, leading his father to file a murder case with Chawkbazar Police Station.
