DHAKA: The submission of depositions by witnesses against 667 accused members of the 24 Rifles Battalion in the BDR carnage case began Saturday, with material evidences placed before the judges at a special trial court.

The special court-5 took up the proceedings at about 9:45 am recording deposition made by JCO subedar M Motiur Rahman, also the plaintiff of the case.

All the 667 accused BDR jawans, including 29 who confessed to their involvement in the February 25-26 Pilkhana carnage amid a mass mutiny, were produced in the court.

The court, led by BDR Director-General Maj General Rafiqul Islam, took a break for half an hour at 11 am.

The mutinous border guards in the dock got three opportunities to prove themselves innocent. These are self defence, consultation with civil lawyers, and assistance from the “friends of the accused”.

Lt Col AKM Golam Rabbani, Maj Sayeed and Deputy Attorney-General Advocate M Suhrawardy, representative from the Attorney-General, assisted the DG of the mutiny-ridden paramilitary border force in presiding over the biggest trial ever in the country’s history involving the mayhem.

Still picture and video footage of the happenings during the mutiny, mobile-pone call list of the accused and documents of leave application were placed in the court. The court asked for placing the laminated still pictures and CDs of video footage.

The BDR court pressed charges against the big batch of 667 BDR mutineers on June 26 and adjourned the proceedings till 9 am on September 4.

Initially, the number of accused was 668. The court exempted Naik Jainal Abedin from the charges as he died in the meantime.

Seventy-three people, including 57 army officers, were killed at the BDR headquarters during the mutiny on February 25-26 last year.

Six special courts, including two in the capital, were set up on November last year to try the mutineers. A number of BDR members were sentenced to different terms of imprisonment in Feni, Satkhira, Rangamati, Panchagarh, Thakurgaon and Sunamganj districts for their involvement in the widespread mutiny.

BDST: 1240 HRS, SEPT 4, 2010