War crimes case verdict against Bangladesh's Islamist party chief postponed

A war crimes court in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka has postponed pronouncement of verdict in a war crimes case against the country's largest Islamist party chief due to his sickness.
The court named "The International Crimes Tribunal-1(ICT-1)" was scheduled to pronounce the verdict Tuesday on Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami party chief Motiur Rahman Nizami who has been charged with "crimes against humanity" during the 1971 war with Pakistan.
"The tribunal keeps verdict pending on Nizami case as he falls sick," ICT-1 spokesman AKM Nasiruddin Mahmud told journalists Tuesday.
He said jail authorities have informed the tribunal through a letter on Tuesday morning that he (Nizami) is sick.
"Decision to fix a fresh date to pronounce verdict will be made shortly after getting health status report of the accused."
The tribunal has asked the jail authorities to submit health status report of Nizami at its earliest, the ICT-1 official said.
He said the tribunal will keep verdict pending on Nizami case until it gets his health status report.
Nizmai, who was a cabinet minister during former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's last term in 2001-2006 and sentenced to death in January in a huge arms cache case, is facing 16 charges including looting, killing, rape, arson, torture and confinement of people during the Liberation War in 1971.
Ten current and former leaders of ex-Prime Minister Khaleda Zia 's opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat have already been sentenced to either death or life imprisonment for crimes against humanity linked to the country's war of independence.
In December last year, Bangladesh executed Abdul Quader Molla, assistant secretary general of Jamaat, the first execution of a war criminal in the country.
After returning to power in January 2009, Hasina, daughter of Bangladesh's independence hero Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, established the first tribunal in March 2010, almost 40 years after the 1971 fight for independence from Pakistan.
Both BNP and Jamaat, which allegedly collaborated with the Pakistani forces in 1971 to prevent an independent Bangladesh, have already dismissed the court as a government "show trial" and said it is a domestic set-up with no UN oversight or involvement.
Dozens of people were killed as Jamaat men staged violent demonstrations since the beginning of last year after two tribunals dealing with war crimes cases started to deliver verdicts on war crimes cases.
Paramilitary troops were deployed in Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Monday night to thwart any untoward incident ahead of the court verdict against the country's largest Islamist party chief.