In the Supreme Court of Bangladesh High Court Division

(Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Present:

Mr. Justice Ashish Ranjan Das And

Mr. Justice Md. Riaz Uddin Khan

Death Reference No. 169 of 2017

The State

-Vs-

Md. Rabbi Hossain Mona

...Condemned-Prisoner With

Criminal Appeal No. 14469 of 2017

Md. Rabbi Hossain Mona

...Appellant (Condemned-Prisoner) -Vs-

The State

...Respondent With

Jail Appeal No. 02 of 2018

Md. Rabbi Hossain Mona

...Appellant (Condemned-Prisoner) -Vs-

The State

...Respondent Mr. S.M. Asraful Hoque, D.A.G with

Mr. Md. Akber Hossain, A.A.G

-----For the State

Mr. Md. Towfic Anower Chowdhury, with

Ms. Afroja Akter, Advocates

...For the Appellant (Condemned-Prisoner) Judgment on: 22nd February, 2024

Md. Riaz Uddin Khan, J:

The convict prisoner stood trial upon allegation of murder of one Saira Khatun Alo under section 302 of the Penal Code and the trial Judge after concluding the trial convicted the condemned prisoner under section 302 of the Penal Code and sentenced him to death and following section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure this matter has been placed before us as Death Reference. The convict prisoner also filed Criminal Appeal No. 14469 of 2017 before this Court assailing the judgment and order of conviction and sentence.

Short facts of this case is that on 07.09.2013 one Shahjalal lodged a First Information Report with Pallabi Police Station against some unknown accused alleging inter alia that the deceased Saira Khatun Alo is his elder sister and used to live with her husband at his rented house and both the informant and his sister were engaged in embroidery job. On 06.09.2013 at about 5.30 p.m. informant’s sister Saira Khatun Alo left her house with his brother-in-law Md. Mona, the condemned prisoner with taka 20,000/- to redeem her pawned gold ornament (gold chain). Later, at about 8.30 p.m. the informant received a call from her sister’s mobile phone that his sister has been killed. Immediately, the informant went to the place of occurrence and found his sister lying dead at the slope of Abbas Uddin School with multiple injuries of sharp weapons in her body and informed by police that some unknown accused killed her sister with blows of knives. Thereafter, police prepared inquest report of the dead body and seizure lists after collecting alamat from the spot. The informant suspected that on 06.09.2013, in between 5.30 p.m. and 7.40 p.m. some unknown accused in planned manner having killed his sister with sharp weapons fled away from the spot leaving behind the dead body. After the occurrence, Md. Mona, brother-in-law of the informant’s sister remained absconded. Informant suspected the younger brother of his sister’s husband the condemned prisoner, Md. Mona son of late Md. Ismail in connection with the killing of his sister.

On the above allegation Pallabi Police Station Case No. 34 dated 07.09.2013 corresponding to GR No. 628 of 2013 under sections 302/34 of the Penal Code was started against some unknown accused persons.

Police prepared the inquest report of the dead body and sent the same to the Hospital for autopsy wherein it was done accordingly.

On 11.09.2013 the police arrested the condemned-prisoner and on 12.09.2013 he made confession before the learned Magistrate. After investigation Police submitted charge sheet being No. 141 dated 30.04.2014 under

section 302 of the Penal Code against the appellant.

After exhausting necessary steps the learned Magistrate transmitted the case record to the Court of the learned Metropolitan Sessions Judge, Dhaka and the same was registered as Metropolitan Sessions Case No. 4734 of 2014 and later Metropolitan Sessions Judge, Dhaka sent the case record to the learned Judge (District and Sessions), Druto Bichar Tribunal-4 and Special Sessions Court, Dhaka.

Having received the case on 10.06.2014 for trial, the learned Judge, Druto Bichar Tribunal-4 and Special Sessions Court, Dhaka fra