Former army chief General (Retd.) Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan testified before International Crimes Tribunal-1 that the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) detained and tortured Tarique Rahman during the 2007–2009 emergency period. His statement came in a case against Ziaul Ahsan over alleged crimes against humanity involving abduction and murder. Bhuiyan said DGFI became the main controlling authority of the country during that time, detaining ministers and political figures in secret cells for interrogation.

In his testimony, Bhuiyan described how the emergency period altered the culture within the armed forces, leading to a return to political involvement, a rise in dominance attitudes, and divisions between senior and junior officers. He also mentioned the emergence of a cash-driven culture and blind obedience to superiors’ orders.

The testimony further recalled the 2009 BDR mutiny, in which 57 military officers and 17 civilians were killed. Human Rights Watch reported that around 50 BDR members died under interrogation at Pilkhana. Later, a court sentenced 152 to death, 161 to life imprisonment, and 256 to various prison terms.