Assassination attempt on Zafar Iqbal: Prime accused jailed for life, another gets 4yrs imprisonment

A Sylhet court has sentenced the prime accused to life term imprisonment and another to four years behind bars in the case filed over the attempted murder in the case filed over the attack on renowned writer Dr Muhammad Zafar Iqbal on the campus of Shahajalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) back in 2018.

Sylhet's Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal Judge Nurul Amin Biplob handed down the verdict on Tuesday noon, confirmed Special Public Prosecutor (PP) Mominur Rahman Titu to The Business Standard. 

The prime accused Faizul Hasan has been imprisoned for life while Md Sohag Miah will have to spend four years in jail for their crimes.

Meanwhile, the court acquitted the other four accused in the case.

They are – Faizul's father Maulana Atiqur Rahman, mother Minara Begum, uncle Fazlul Haque and brother Enamul Hasan.

On 10 March, recording of the testimonies concluded after recording 35 out of 62 total witnesses testified.

Later on, 21 and 22 March, the argument on the case concluded, and the court set 26 April to deliver a verdict.

On 3 March, 2018,  a youth named Faizul swooped on Prof Zafar Iqbal and stabbed him with a knife at the SUST Mukta Mancha during a celebration programme, 'Robofight,' of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE) department.

SUST Registrar Ishfaqul Hossain filed a case with Jalalabad police station the following day.

On 8 March, a court placed Faizul on a 10-day remand for interrogation. Later Faizul gave a confessional statement before the court.

On 26 July, police pressed charges against six people, including Faizul and Atiqur, in connection with the attack.

On 4 October 2018, the official trial in the case began by framing charges against the accused.

The other charge-sheeted accused are Faizul's mother Minara Begum, brother Enamul Hasan, maternal uncle Md Fazlul Haque and friend Sohagh Miah.