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No obstacle to court martial
The law ministry yesterday okayed a proposal of the home ministry for trial of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) mutineers in court martial.Contacted, Law Minister Shafique Ahmed told The Daily Star that his ministry has given its views on the home ministry's proposal, saying clauses of the Army Act 1952 are applicable to the BDR members. He noted that since the BDR is raised and maintained by the government as a 'disciplined force', its members can be brought under the Army Act for trial. As per rules of Article 152 of the Constitution, any disciplined force can be tried under the Army Act, he mentioned. The law minister however said the government will finalise the mode of trial after getting the probe reports on the Pilkhana massacre. If BDR jawans only are involved in the carnage, they can be tried under the Army Act 1952, he said. The trial process will be transparent, and the accused will be given opportunity to defend themselves, Shafique added. Posted by: Fred 2009-03-20 |
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