Politicians are behind murders of foreigners in Bangladesh, Home Minister Kamal says

Politicians are behind the murders of two foreigners, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal has said.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 27 Oct 2015, 12:58 PM
Updated : 27 Oct 2015, 02:08 PM

Though the home minister has not said who these politicians are, leaders of his Awami League party have been blaming BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami for the murders.
 
Kamal spoke about the ‘involvement of politicians’ on Tuesday, a day after police arrested four suspected murderers of Italian charity worker Cesare Tavella in Gulshan.
 
Police claimed they murdered Tavella following order from a Borho Bhai (big brother).
 
The assailants’ plan was to ‘murder any white person’ to lead the other countries to believe that ‘Bangladesh was not safe for foreigners’, the law-enforcers claim.
 
“The Borho Bhai is not the main person behind the murder of Italian citizen Tavella. Those behind him are politicians,” Kamal said.

He, however, has not named any particular political party.

The home minister has been saying the recent murders of Tavella, Japanese Kunio Hoshi in Rangpur, and a policeman at Dhaka’s Gabtoli, and the attack on a Shia gathering in Old Dhaka are linked.
 
He says these incidents aimed at destabilising the country.

“Involvement of political party leaders has been found from the information and evidence. They are under detectives’ surveillance,” Kamal said on Tuesday.

“They will be arrested soon after analysing the information and evidence,” he added.

He admitted that some of these suspects had already left the country.

“They will be brought back through the Interpol,” he said.

The home minister said different people took part in the murders of Tavella and Hoshi, but the motives were same.

“The murders of foreigners are international and local conspiracy. The conspirators want to prove Bangladesh a militant country. The murders were planned at the same place,” he said.

He said the details would be revealed within a day or two.

“The detectives have solved the murders. The delay is only for crosschecking information,” he added.

Kamal also said no one would be framed in these cases like the BNP did during its tenure in the investigation into the Aug 21, 2004 attack on an Awami League rally.

A vagabond Joj Mia was framed by the investigators over the attack. 

About the attack on the Shia gathering in Old Dhaka’s Hossaini Dalan, the home minister said all video footage was already collected.

“Those involved in the attack will be identified soon,” he added.