Dhaka, Aug. 01 (V7N) – Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam has said that an investigation found current Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed had also been detained at the Task Force for Interrogation (TFI) Cell before he was allegedly smuggled to India.
He made the remarks while speaking to reporters after visiting the alleged secret detention facility at the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) headquarters on Saturday (Aug. 1) morning.
The chief prosecutor said the tribunal judges were taken to the facility to directly inspect what he described as a torture cell, adding that the visit would form part of the trial proceedings before the International Crimes Tribunal.
He also warned that those responsible for destroying evidence to conceal the alleged detention facility, commonly referred to as the "Mirror House," would not be spared.
Meanwhile, lawyers representing the accused rejected the allegations, claiming there was no such TFI Cell and that RAB had no involvement in the alleged activities.
Earlier in the day, a three-member bench of International Crimes Tribunal-1, members of the prosecution team and defence lawyers visited the TFI Cell at the RAB-1 headquarters in Uttara, arriving at the site after 10:30 a.m.
The case involves allegations of crimes against humanity linked to enforced disappearances at the TFI Cell. A total of 17 people have been named as accused, including 10 army officers who are currently under arrest. Investigators said the officers were serving with RAB at the time of the alleged incidents.
Those named in the case include former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her former security adviser Tariq Ahmed Siddique, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, former RAB Director General Benazir Ahmed, M Khurshid Hossain, Md. Harun Or Rashid and retired Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Khairul Islam, who remains absconding.
On July 21, International Crimes Tribunal-1 approved the prosecution's application to inspect the TFI Cell as part of the ongoing investigation into the alleged enforced disappearances.
END/SMA/AJ
