The High Court today commuted the death sentences of seven jailed militants in the Holey Artisan attack case to imprisonment till death.
The convicts are – Jahangir Hossain, Aslam Hossain Rash, Hadisur Rahman, Rakibul Hasan Regan, Md Abdus Sabur Khan, Shariful Islam Khaled, and Mamunur Rashid Ripon.
The bench of Justice Shahidul Karim and Justice Md Mostafizur Rahman delivered the verdict after rejecting separate appeals filed by the convicts challenging the lower court verdict.
The bench on October 11 set the date for delivering the verdict after concluding the hearing of the death reference and appeals in the case.
According to the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), death penalties ordered by the lower court are examined by the HC before the punishment is confirmed.
On July 1, 2016, five militants with firearms, machetes, and grenades stormed the upscale eatery in the diplomatic zone in Gulshan and held the diners hostage before killing three Bangladeshis, seven Japanese, nine Italians, and one Indian national.
The militants were killed during a rescue operation by army commandos. Two police officials and a chef of the café were also killed during the 12-hour standoff. On November 27, 2019, the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal in Dhaka convicted and sentenced seven militants to death for their involvement in the attack.
