Dhaka, February 26 (NationPress) — The Supreme Court of Bangladesh has cleared Khan Akram Hossain, a convict of war crimes from the Bagerhat district, by overturning his life sentence related to a crimes against humanity case from the nation’s 1971 Liberation War, according to reports from local media.

A judicial panel headed by Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury delivered the ruling following Akram’s appeal against the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) verdict issued on August 11, 2015.

Akram was implicated as one of three alleged members of the Razakar force, a pro-Pakistani paramilitary group established in 1971 in Bagerhat. The other defendants were Sheikh Sirajul Haque, known as Siraj Master, and Abdul Latif Talukder, as reported by bdnews24.

In August 2015, the ICT sentenced Akram to life imprisonment, while co-defendant Razakar leader Sheikh Sirajul Haque received the death penalty for his role in crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.

Akram was found guilty of detaining and torturing freedom fighter Fazlur Rahman Sikder in Morrelganj Upazila, leading to his death.

Another accused, Abdul Latif Talukdar, was also charged but passed away due to age-related illnesses before the case concluded, resulting in his removal from the trial.

After his conviction, Akram appealed to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, contesting the life sentence.

This latest ruling marks another instance of a 1971 war crime convict being acquitted through a review petition since the fall of the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government amid a violent uprising in August 2024.

Previously, in May 2025, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh acquitted ATM Azharul Islam, a radical leader from Jamaat-e-Islami, reversing his death sentence imposed by the ICT. He had spent nearly 13 years in prison for war crimes.

Azharul Islam faced charges for crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War, which included the killings of 1,256 individuals, abductions of 17, and the rapes of 13 women in the Rangpur region, according to local media sources.

Following his release, Azharul Islam successfully contested elections as a member of Parliament from the Rangpur-2 constituency on February 12.

Experts have consistently warned that the acquittal of 1971 war crime convicts by Bangladeshi courts could establish a worrying trend of leniency towards pro-Pakistani factions, jeopardizing the principles of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War and the hard-won independence of the nation.