August 21: The Black Day
2004 (BNP-led Alliance in power)
August 21
The grenade attack on an Awami League rally at 5:22pm in Dhaka killed 24 people and injured 300 more. Attackers left the spot immediately, reportedly with the help of politicians and the law enforcement agencies.
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Sheikh Hasina blamed the BNP-led government for the attack.
August 22
A case was filed with Motijheelpolice station in connection with the grenade attack. The government formed a one-member judicial inquiry commission led by a High Court judge.
August 23
The Detective Branch of police took charge of the investigation but failed to start it.
US President George W Bush expressed shock at the incident. The US, the UK, Pakistan and India offered help to investigate the case.
August 24
Awami League and its allies enforced a two-day countrywide strike.
August 26
The government asked for Interpol's help in investigating the case. The CID took over the investigation.
August 29
Interpol experts arrived in Dhaka, scanned the scene and collected information from local investigators.
September 1
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents arrived to investigate the grenade attack.
September 5
US State Department's counter-terrorism coordinator Joseph Cofer Black arrivedin Dhaka to meet Khaleda and Hasina.
October 2
The judicial inquiry commission claimed in its report to haveidentified the criminals, but its head Justice Joynul Abedin declined to disclose their identities, hinting at the involvement of foreign forces apart from the local ones.
2006
October
The investigators were trying to divert the investigation to a different angle to save the real criminals during the BNP-Jamaat regime.
Media reports on the fake tale of “Joj Mia” were brought to public attention as CID officials also attempted to mislead the investigation.
2007 (Caretaker Government)
August 22
Awami League enforced an indefinite strike in Dhaka and five other districts. The government closed down all universities and colleges.
The strike was withdrawn a few days later, but the public universities in six cities remained close for about two months.
August 23
Security forces forcibly vacated the Dhaka University dorms.
July 31
A new CID official was given the charge for fresh investigation into the carnage.
2008
June 11
The CID submitted charge sheet accusing 22 people, including Huji leader Mufti Hannan and former deputy minister of the BNP Abdus Salam Pintu.
October 29
Court framed charges against the 22 accused.
2009(Awami League-led alliance in power)
June 22
A petition was filed for further investigation to identify the suppliers of Arges grenades used in the attack.
August 3
Court ordered further probe.
August 12
A new CID official was assigned to continue the investigation; he continued the task for about 23 months.
2011
July 3
The CID submitted supplementary charge sheet, accusing 30 more individuals, including politicians, senior officials of civil and military intelligence and law enforcement agencies.
2012
March
Charges against 30 accused were framed by the court in a fresh supplementary charge sheet, taking the number of accused to 52.
In March, the opposition leader and former prime ministerKhaleda Zia’s son Tarique Rahman, and 29 others were charged for their involvement and approving the attack executed by Huji men and other accomplices.
Huji founder Abdus Salam, Huji leaders Maulana Sheikh Farid, MaulanaAbdurRouf and Maulana Abdul HannanSabbir, Kashmir-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) leader Abdul Malek alias Golam Mohammad, Pakistan-based LeT leader Yusuf Butt alias Majid Butt, Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hai, Hafez MaulanaYahya and Babu alias RatulBabu were identified as the perpetrators.
Then IGP ShahudulHaque and then DMP commissioner Ashraful Huda were charged with providing financial and administrative support to the attackers.
Then deputy commissioner (East) of the DMP Obaidur Rahman and then DC (South) of the DMP Khan Sayeed Hassan were charged with making the evidence of the attack vanish and providing the killers with administrative assistance.
Lt Commander (retd) Saiful Islam Duke, the nephew and private secretary of then PM Khaleda; then director of Counter Terrorism Intelligence Bureau of DGFI Maj Gen ATM Amin; and then DGFI official (later sacked) Saiful Islam Joarderwere charged for protectingArges grenades supplier militant Tajuddin.
Then senior officials of the CID SP Ruhul Amin, ASP MunshiAtiqur Rahman and ASP Abdur Rashid and former IGP KhodaBaksh Chowdhury were charged with misleading the case to save the killers.
Ruhul Amin, Atiqur Rahman and Abdur Rashid led the first investigation, at that time KhodaBaksh was IGP.
March 27
Re-trial began.
2017
October
Court recorded testimonies of 225 out of 511 prosecution witnesses and 20 defence witnesses of the cases.
2018
September 18
Trial completes after 14 years.
2019
January
The High Court accepted the hearing appeals filed by the convicted accused of the deadly August 21 grenade attack.
