Staff Correspondent

In the notable 21st August grenade attack case, the High Court acquitted all the defendants, including BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment, and former State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar, who had been sentenced to death.

On Sunday, the High Court bench, comprising Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Syed Enayet Hossain announced the verdict after considering two death references, the appeals of the accused, and jail appeals. Additionally, the court invalidated the trial court’s ruling.

Earlier, on November 21, the death reference (approval of the death sentence) and appeal hearings in this case were completed. On that day, the court kept the matter in the cause list (pending for judgment). The issue was later scheduled for today’s proceedings.

The hearings for the case began on October 31 in the High Court. Deputy Attorney General Mohammad Jasim Sarkar represented the state, while Senior Lawyers SM Shahjahan and Mohammad Shishir Monir argued on behalf of the accused.