The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence for Aminul Islam over the killings of Dr Nazneen Aktar, a doctor at Labaid Hospital, and her domestic aide Parvin Aktar Parul.
In a separate case, the appellate court revised the death sentence of Swapan Kumar Biswas, accused of killing his wife, to life in prison, reports bdnews24.com.
A six-member virtual appellate bench led by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain made the decisions on Monday, settling the appeals of the two convicts.
DEATH UPHELD FOR AMINUL
Aminul Islam came to Dhaka for his studies, staying with his uncle Asaruzzaman, the husband of Dr Nazneen Aktar. He was admitted to Mohammadpur Central College.
On Mar 7, 2005, Aminul hacked Nazneen to death after she returned from the hospital. He also hacked Parvin Aktar Parul, a domestic aide, to death after he was discovered.
Aminul fled, eventually adopting a new identity as Shariful Islam. He was arrested by Detective Branch police and confessed to the murders to the court.
On May 29, 2008, the Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal-4 sentenced Aminul to death over the murder case at the Dhanmondi Police Station.
According to the law, the case was then sent to the High Court to receive the death reference (confirmation of the trial court’s verdict). Aminul, meanwhile, appealed the decision.
The High Court heard the appeal and upheld the death sentence from the trial court on Oct 10, 2013.
The Appellate Division then heard the case and issued its decision on Monday.
State-appointed Advocate ABM Bayezid represented the defence in the Nazneen murder case on Monday, while Deputy Attorney General Biswajit Debnath represented the state.
“Aminul Islam cruelly hacked his aunt and household help Parul to death,” said Deputy Attorney General Biswajit Debnath. “Nazneen had seven injuries on her neck and body from the attack, while Parul had 18. The Appellate Division has upheld the trial court’s verdict in this matter.”
SWAPAN GETS LIFE IN PRISON OVER WIFE’S MURDER
The Appellate Division revised the death sentence of Swapan Kumar Biswas to life in prison on Monday. A trial court had sentenced Swapan to death for the murder of his wife in Kushtia and the decision had been upheld by the High Court.
“The appeal has been accepted and the sentence revised,” the court said in the verdict. “The court is sentencing the appellant to life imprisonment instead of death. A fine of Tk 5,000 has been imposed, with 15 days of additional imprisonment in case of non-payment. The accused will get the benefit of Article 35 (a) of the Criminal Code of Procedure when calculating his verdict.”
The court also ordered Swapan to be moved to a general prison cell from his condemned cell.
Swapan lived in Nilphamari’s Syedpur with his wife Alpona Roy and worked as a sales representative.
One day in October 2006 he brought a woman named Swapna Rani Ghosh to their home, introducing her as his first wife. Upon hearing this, Alpona left for her father’s house. Swapan and Swapna got into an argument that night. Around 5 am, the landlord heard Swapan’s screams, rushed to the home and found Swapna hanging from a ceiling fan.
Though initially believed to be suicide, police eventually claimed murder in the charge sheet because of an injury to Swapna’s head. They said Swapan killed her during an argument over her second marriage and made it look like suicide.
On Nov 18, 2008, a trial court sentenced him to death. The death reference was sent to the High Court and Swapan appealed the decision.
On Apr 9, 2014, the High Court upheld the decision and Swapan appealed the verdict again.
Swapan could not afford a lawyer, but wrote to Advocate Khandker Mahbub Hossain for his help, after which Hossain agreed to oversee his case.
The Appellate Division then revised the verdict to life in prison on Monday.
Attorney General Sk Md Morshed represented the state in the second murder case, while Advocate Khandker Mahbub Hossain and state-appointed Advocate Hasina Akter represented the defence.