DHAKA: A Dhaka court deferred deposition by the witnesses in Major General Manzur murder case to October 28.

Judge Borhan Uddin of the first Additional and Session Judge’s court in Dhaka fixed the date, as no witness did turn up at the court Monday.

Special public prosecutor Shahidur Rahman told banglanews that the court summoned five persons to testify Monday.

The accused of the case--former President HM Ershad, Major (retd) Kazi Emdadul Haque and Lt Col (retd) Mostafa kamaluddin Bhuiyan--appeared before the court.

Advocate Sirajul Islam fought for the high-profile accused.

Of the 49 witnesses, depositions by 23 were taken in the Manzur murder case. Earlier on July 5 last year, former Inspector-General of Police ASM Shahjahan made his deposition.

In the charge-sheet, it was stated that with a false promise of holding court martial for Maj Gen Manzur, who was believed to have executed the abortive Chittagong coup in which president Zia was assassinated in 1981, HM Ershad, the then Army Chief, had taken a direction from the then Acting President to bring Manzur from the police custody to the army confinement.

While Manzur was being taken to the cantonment from the police custody, Manzur was gunned down, it is stated in the case.

General Manzur was sot dead in front of the Firing Range of Chittagong Cantonment after taking him off a jeep on June 1, 1981, the charge-sheet mentioned.

Abul Mansur, elder brother of Manzur, filed a Criminal Miscellaneous Case under section 561 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CRPC) in 2002.

The charge-sheeted accused of the case are Lt Gen (retd) HM Ershad, Maj Gen (rtd) Abdul Latif, Lt Col (rtd) Shamsur Rahman, Capt (retd) Kazi Emdadul Haque and Lt Col (retd) Mostafa Kamaluddin Bhuiyan.

Maj Gen (retd) Abdul Latif and Capt (rtd) Kazi Emdadul Haque made a confessional statement in the case before Dhaka Metropolitan judge.

BDST: 1447 HRS, SEP 2010.