Judicial

The mass killings and forced migration of the Bengali Hindus in the Ayubian massacres (1961-64) during the first phase of the genocide (1958-65) has been described by the Indian Commission of Jurists as genocide. The massacres during the final phase of the genocide (1971) has been described by various judicial bodies as genocide.

In 1964, the Indian Commission of Jurists instituted a committee to enquire into the causes of recurrent large scale migrations of non-Muslims from East Pakistan to India. The committee submitted its report before the commission in 1965, where it categorically termed the incidents of atrocities on the Hindus as genocide.

It stated, “The Hindus, Christians and Buddhists in East Pakistan are both a national as well as a religious group. The evidence discloses that the earlier and recent migrations have been the direct result of killing members of a group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, and deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part. As for the intent we are of opinion that these recurring atrocities are being perpetrated with the sole purpose of eliminating non-Muslims from Pakistan as is clear by the massive anti-Hindu propaganda which precede the atrocities. The crime of Genocide has certainly been established so far as Hindus are concerned.“

In 1972, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) conducted a study of the events in East Pakistan between March and December 1971, based on published books, newspaper reports, depositions of refugees and written statements before the commission by Western nationals who were in East Pakistan at the time. The ICJ had previously published a report in 1965 on the continuous exodus of the minorities from East Pakistan, detailing the incidents of massacres in 1964.

In its 1972 report, it observed that according to the international law, the crime of ‘genocide’ was not applicable for the incidents of persecution of the Bengalis (Bengali speaking population) as an ethnic or national group, but the crime of ‘genocide’ was applicable for the massacres of the Hindus as a religious group.

It stated, “As far as the other three groups are concerned, namely members of the Awami League, students and Hindus, only Hindus would seem to fall within the definition of ‘a national, ethnical, racial or religious group’. There is overwhelming evidence that Hindus were slaughtered and their houses and villages destroyed simply because they were Hindus. The oft repeated phrase ‘Hindus are enemies of the state’ as a justification for the killing does not gainsay the intent to commit genocide; rather does it confirm the intention. The Nazis regarded the Jews, as enemies of the state and killed them as such. In our view there is a strong prima facie case that the crime of genocide was committed against the group comprising the Hindu population of East Bengal.“

The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) of Bangladesh was established in 2009 in accordance with The International Crimes (Tribunals) Act of 1973. Since its established, it has prosecuted and sentenced several Bangladeshi nationals who collaborated with the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.

In its judgements, the International Crimes Tribunal has consistently held the accused guilty of the crime of ‘genocide’ for their involvement in the massacre of Hindus. According to the ICT, the massacre of Hindus was committed with the intention to destroy the Hindus as a religious group in part.

As an example, in the prosecution of Md. Mahbubur Rahman, found guilty of massacre of 33 Bengali Hindus at Mirzapur in Tangail District on 22 April 1971, the judgement states – “It is evinced that accused Md. Mahbubur Rahman @ Mahbub @ Mahebul and his cohort Razakars being imbued by extreme aggression got consciously engaged in criminal enterprise and perpetrated the selective killings, with intent to cripple or destroy the substantial part of Hindu religious group constituting the offence of ‘genocide’.”