DHAKA:  The International Crimes Tribunal held back from issuing warrant against Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Ameer Delwar Hossain Sayedee as the stateside prosecutors failed to produce ‘proper grounds’ for ordering his arrest on war-crime charges.

After Tuesday’s brief hearing on the prosecution plea for issuing arrest warrant against him, tribunal chief justice Nizamul Haque in the court said, “Proper grounds for his arrest could not be presented on government’s behalf.”

“We are not satisfied,” said the tribunal chief, holding back from issuing the warrant until next hearing.  

The tribunal fixed Wednesday for the next hearing on his petition challenging the prosecution’s bid to show the already-detained Jamaat leader arrested on charges of wartime ‘crime against humanity’.

It also asked the government prosecutes to produce sufficient grounds on their appeal for the arrest of Sayedee.

Besides, the tribunal ordered the authorities to produce Sayedee again Wednesday as the pre-warrant hearing about charges of crimes against him during the 1971 liberation war ended inconclusively Tuesday.

Meanwhile, after a full-dress hearing, the court rejected six other petitions filed by four other detained top Jamaat leaders. They are party Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami, Secretary-General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujaheed and Assistant Secretaries-General Mohammad Kamaruzzaman and Abdul Quader Mollah.

Sayedee was produced before the ICT at about 10:15am Tuesday amid tight security. Tribunal judges Mohammad Nizamul Haque Nasim, ATM Fazle Kabir and AKM Zahir Ahmed were present at the court.

Later, Sayedee was sent back to jail after hearing at about 11:20am.

Prosecutor Haidar Ali took part in the hearing on government’s behalf.

Earlier, the authorities had been directed twice to produce Sayedee before the tribunal on August 10 and 24. But the dates were deferred for Sayedee’s sickness and renovation work on the court building.

Besides, the investigation team of the International Crimes Tribunal on Sunday began a second round of investigation into two cases filed against Sayedee in his home-district Pirojpur.

Earlier on Monday, the International Crimes Tribunal investigators claimed that they gathered enough evidences of 12 persons, including former Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Golam Azam and detained top leaders of the party, having committed ‘crimes against humanity’ during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.

Jamaat chief Motiur Rahman Nizami, Secretary-General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed and Nayeb-e-Ameer Delwar Hossain Sayedee were arrested on June 29 on charges of hurting religious sentiments of Muslims through their perceived blasphemous comments.

Later, assistant secretaries-general Mohammad Kamaruzzaman and Abdul Quader Mollah were arrested from the High Court gate on July 13 in a murder-and-arson case filed with Pallabi thana by an injured freedom fighter in January 2008.

The International Crimes Tribunal under the 1973 act is holding the trial of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the Liberation War.

After having secured bail in other cases against them, the top Jamaat leaders are now held in jail to stand trial on charges of the wartime crimes.

BDST: 1222 HRS, SEPT 21, 2010