Lawyers aligned with the Awami League gathered on the International Crimes Tribunal and the Supreme Court premises on Wednesday as two Supreme Court lawyers facing contempt proceedings appeared before the tribunal over their alleged remarks on its recent verdict sentencing seven senior Awami League leaders and activists, including party general secretary Obaidul Quader, to death for crimes against humanity during the July Uprising.

The gathering was notable as one of the first visible displays of support by lawyers aligned with the Awami League at the court premises since the party was ousted from power following the July 2024 uprising.

The lawyers facing contempt proceedings — M Hasanuzzaman Tushar and Barrister Mohammad Hasan Chowdhury — appeared before International Crimes Tribunal-2 in response to the tribunal’s September 16 summons.

The prosecution had alleged that the two lawyers described the September 15 verdict as ‘illegal’, a ‘dictated verdict’ and a ‘kangaroo court verdict’.

The tribunal, headed by Justice Nozrul Islam Chowdhury, on Wednesday adjourned the proceedings until October 26 as Justice Md Manjurul Basit could not attend the hearing because of illness.

Senior lawyer Md Munsurul Hoque Chowdhury appeared for the two lawyers.

The prosecution lawyers did not oppose the adjournment, while a number of lawyers aligned with the Awami League gathered inside and around the tribunal premises.

After the hearing, the lawyers came out of the tribunal and formed a human chain near the tribunal gate and the Supreme Court Bar Association premises. They also took photographs and selfies, turning the gathering into a visible show of solidarity with the two lawyers facing the contempt proceedings.

The development came days after ICT-2 sentenced Quader and six other senior Awami League and affiliated-organisations leaders on September 15 to death in absentia in the July Uprising crimes against humanity case.

The other six are former state minister Mohammad Ali Arafat, Awami League joint general secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Juba League chairman Sheikh Fazle Shams Parash, its general secretary Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil, and former Chhatra League president Saddam Hussain and its general secretary Sheikh Wali Asif Enan.

The seven accused remained at large and were tried in absentia.

The tribunal also ordered confiscation of 50 per cent of the movable and immovable properties of Quader, Nasim, Arafat, Parash and Nikhil, with the proceeds to be used for compensation to victims or their families through the July Foundation or another statutory organisation.

The contempt proceedings originated from Facebook posts allegedly made by Tushar and Hasan Chowdhury after the verdict.

On September 16, prosecutor Tamim told the tribunal that the two lawyers’ comments questioned the authority and legitimacy of the tribunal and its judgment. He said that while the verdict had generated criticism in different quarters, the prosecution had specifically brought the two lawyers’ Facebook posts to the tribunal’s attention because they were practicing Supreme Court lawyers.

The tribunal, however, did not make a finding of contempt at that stage and summoned the lawyers to hear their explanations before deciding whether their remarks constituted contempt of court.

The lawyers’ gathering on Wednesday also reflected the continuing political contestation surrounding the tribunal’s July Uprising cases.

The Awami League has remained outside the formal political arena following its removal from power, while cases before the tribunal against its senior leaders have become a major legal and political issue.

The September 15 verdict against Quader and the six others followed an eight-month trial. The prosecution had alleged that the accused acted in concert to direct, incite or facilitate violence against protesters during the July Uprising.

The contempt proceedings against the two lawyers now add another dimension to the confrontation between lawyers aligned with the former ruling party and the tribunal dealing with crimes allegedly committed during the uprising.