TDS Desk:

Those who fired bullets from helicopters and those who gave the order are all criminals, said the High Court during a hearing Wednesday.

“It can be said that all of us who were with this system are criminals,” said the High Court bench led by Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif during the hearing of a writ regarding the investigation and compensation for the death of nine children who were shot dead during the recent protests.

The High Court bench critisised the Judicial Inquiry Commission saying, “Those who were responsible for firing from helicopters were not identified in the report, rather they put the blame on protestors.”

Advocate Taimur Alam Khandker filed the writ by presenting articles from various newspapers and magazines on 1 August.

In addition to the inquiry regarding the nine children who were killed in the writ, the petitioner also demanded a compensation of Tk1 crore for each family of the deceased. Also, if any other deaths of children are reporter later, they will also have to be compensated the same way.

When the writ petition seeking formation of a three-member inquiry committee was presented to the bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice SM Masud Hossain Dolon on 4 August, they refused to hear the writ. At that time, the senior judge of the bench said political issues should be settled in the streets.

Later, the same bench heard another writ against the police directly firing on the protesters, which was also dismissed by the HC bench.