The delay in completing the investigation and starting the trial in the case of the murder of journalist couple Sagar Sarwar and Mehrun Rooney is a constant mockery with the country's criminal justice system and is damaging the image of the justice system.
This was observed in full in an order given by Justice Sheikh Hasan Arif and Justice Md. Bazlur Rahman. The full text of the 65-page judgment given on May 13 was published on Tuesday (July 2).
The investigation report on the murder of journalist couple Sagar Sarwar and Mehrun Rooney has been deferred for 111 times so far.
In the context of the full text of the murder, it is said that sometimes it takes more than 20 years for the trial of murder in our country. If such killings are given any political face, it may take longer than that. For example, the FIR in the Bangabandhu assassination case could not be filed for over 21 years.
It is also said that even though 12 years have passed since the Sagar-Rooney murder case, the investigation is still not over and hence it is yet to see the light of justice.
"Unfortunately this case continues to make a mockery with our criminal justice system and catch us off guard. Which was somewhat remedied by the Bangabandhu assassination case and the International Criminal Tribunal case.
Incidentally, these observations were made in the full text of a May 13 judgment of the High Court bench in view of a writ petition challenging the legality of keeping the three death row convicts in condemned cells.
In the judgment, the High Court said, those sentenced to death but pending appeal must not be kept in the condemned cells and the authorities concerned should transfer such convicts from the condemned cells to the general jail.
In the full text of the published judgment, the High Court directed the concerned prison authorities to take immediate steps to transfer the prisoners from the condemned cells to the general prisons and to complete the process within two years.
Incidentally, on February 11, 2012, Sagar Sarwar, news editor of Machranga Television and Mehrun Rooney, senior reporter of ATN Bangla, were killed. After that, Rooney's brother Nausher Alam Roman filed a murder case with Sher-e-bangla Nagar police station.
A total of eight people including Rooney's friend Tanveer Rahman were accused in the case. The other accused are home security personnel Enam Ahmed alias Humayun Kabir, Rafiqul Islam, Bakul Mia, Mintu alias Bargira Mintu alias Masum Mintu, Kamrul Hasan Arun, Palash Rudra Pal, Tanveer and Abu Saeed.