Yunus Govt Arrests Ex-Bangladesh Chief Justice, Links Him To Killing During Anti-Hasina Protests
Bangladesh's police arrested the country's former top judge, 81-year-old ABM Khairul Haque, on Thursday in connection with a murder-related case that happened during the anti-Hasina protests last year. According to an AFP report, a court in Dhaka later sent the former chief justice to jail.
'Haque is facing several other cases, but he was shown arrested for his alleged involvement in a murder," police officer Nasir Islam was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.
He said the cases are from the student uprising last year that ousted former premier Sheikh Hasina.
The murder case was filed by Ala Uddin, a leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) — which is widely expected to win the next election — accusing Haque, Hasina and 465 others for killing his son during the popular uprising.
Haque was brought into a packed courtroom in Dhaka where he remained silent as the judge ordered him to jail, according to witnesses.
He served as Bangladesh's chief justice for eight months beginning in late 2010, and was later appointed chairman of the Law Commission by the Hasina government.
Haque has faced criticism for a 2011 ruling that scrapped the caretaker government system, which previously required ruling parties to step down during election periods to ensure fairness. The decision was widely seen as benefiting Hasina's Awami League and helping it stay in power.
He also delivered several high-profile but contentious verdicts, including in the case surrounding the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh's founding president.
Following Haque's arrest, BNP leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, 'We hope exemplary punishment will be ensured so that the judiciary can never be weaponised against the state."
Mahbub Uddin Khokon, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, said Haque had 'enjoyed various privileges after declaring the caretaker government system illegal." He added, 'His verdict helped the Awami League unleash a reign of terror, including enforced disappearances and murders".
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First Published:
July 24, 2025, 23:39 IST
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