BNP vows to save Mahmudur

The BNP, the key ally of Jamaat-e-Islami, on Wednesday pledged to protect Amar Desh Acting Editor Mahmudur Rahman who is accused in a number of cases for inciting religious hatred .

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 27 Feb 2013, 12:17 PM
Updated : 27 Feb 2013, 12:17 PM

The Shahbagh protesters gave the government an ultimatum to arrest Rahman, a former advisor to Khaleda Zia when she was Prime Minister from 2001-6.

Speaking at a discussion in the capital Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said: “The freedom of speech and writing must be protected by any means. Mahmudur Rahman should not be considered a mere individual. He is the emblem of free thinking as he speaks in favour of justice and truth,”

“It is our responsibility to protect him.”

After the on Feb 15 murder of blogger Rajib Haider, one of the organisers of Shahbagh protest demanding death penalty for war criminals, several newspapers reported that he used to write against Islam and claimed that he was an ‘atheist.’

Amar Desh on Feb 22 carried a report with the caption: “Blogger syndicate defames religion and court.”

The same day, supporters of 12 small political parties ran riot across the country to counter the ‘Ganajagaran Mancha’, a platform in which the Shahbagh uprising culminated to demand death to all convicted war criminals.

Activists of the small parties tore national flags and set Shaheed Minar on fire in Sylhet and Feni.

The incident outraged the Shahbagh protesters who since then have been demanding arrest of Rahman for ‘inflaming violence’.

Referring to Shahbagh protesters’ submission of memorandum to the Home Minister demanding Rahman’s arrest and shutdown of his newspaper, Fakhrul said the freedom of expression is being choked.

“They (Shahbagh protesters) are proving through their activities that they’re working against free thinking.”

Fakhrul said the ruling Awami League during one of its previous tenures had shut down all but four newspapers.

Referring to a report published in the Times of India, the BNP leader alleged that India was ‘patronising’ the Shahbagh youths.

In the Times of India report published on Feb 26, the National Security Advisor lauded Shahbagh youths for, what he said, resisting extremism and upholding democracy.

The report mentioned that India’s Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid during his recent Dhaka visit praised Shahbagh protesters.

Besides India, visiting delegates of several countries since Feb 5 lauded the Shahbagh protest. International media also viewed the spontaneous outpouring of anger as an outburst against years of misrule by the politicians.