Dhaka: Abdul Majed, a sacked Bangladeshi Army officer and one of the convicts in the killing of the country's founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was executed on Sunday, according to a prison official. "The convict was hanged at 12:01 am Sunday," Inspector General of Prisons Brig Gen AKM Mustafa Kamal Pasha was quoted as saying.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, known as the architect of Bangladesh's independence, was killed along with most of his family members at his home in 1975. His daughters, Sheikh Rahina and Sheikh Hasina, the incumbent Prime Minister of Bangladesh, survived because they were living abroad at that time.
Majed, one of the 12 assassins who were awarded death sentence for the 1975 killing, fled the country after Hasina led Awami League came to power in 1996. After being on the run for 20 years, Majed's death sentence was carried out within four days after Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid turned down his clemency plea. He was hanged at Dhaka Central Jail.
Majed, who was arrested in Dhaka on April 7, said during initial interrogation that he was living in India for the last two decades. According to local media, the convict crossed over into Bangladesh on March 15 or 16 through the border in Mymensingh following the coronavirus pandemic. Majed's wife and four other relatives met him for nearly two hours in the prison. President Abdul Hamid had earlier rejected his mercy plea, removing the last hurdle for his hanging.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the 'self confessed killer' was not only involved in Bangabandhu's assassination but also took part in the subsequent killing of four national leaders in high security Dhaka Central Jail on November 3, 1975.
