‘She is with war criminals’

Awami League leader Mahbub-Ul-Alam Hanif on Friday observed that by calling a countrywide shutdown for Tuesday Khaleda Zia again proved that she is defending ‘identified war criminals’.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 1 March 2013, 12:36 PM
Updated : 1 March 2013, 12:36 PM

“Her address makes it clear that she favoured the war criminals,” he said in the evening in his reaction to the BNP Chairperson’s statement in a press conference.

Addressing the press meet in her Gulshan office in the afternoon, Khaleda termed the killing during Thursday’s clashes between the law-enforcing agencies and Jamaat activists ‘genocide’ committed by the government.

Jamaat supporters went berserk after the International Crimes Tribunal-1 sentenced the party’s number two Delwar Hossain Sayedee to death for war crimes during the 1971 Liberation War. At least 35 people were killed, mostly in police firing, in several districts on Thursday.

She also called a countrywide daylong general strike for Tuesday protesting the “genocide by the Awami League-led government and its corruption and misrule”.

Before that, Jamaat announced two-day shutdown from Sunday in protest against the killings.

Hanif, also Awami League Joint General Secretary and Prime Minister’s special aide, told bdnews24.com that the people would reject the BNP and Jamaat-sponsored strike like they had done in the past.

“Opposition leader Khaleda Zia has indulged in conspiracy since the present government took office. She has gone crazy to assume state power through conspiracy,” he said.

The former Prime Minister offered no direct reaction to the verdict against Sayedee but said all the judgements of the international crime tribunals would raise ‘questions’.

She termed the countrywide violence after the verdict against Sayedee ‘the resistance of the people against fascism’ and supported it.

Hanif said: “The activists of the BNP, Jamaat and Shibir attack and loot police stations, beat the members of the law-enforcing agencies to death without any reason. Police (opened fire) for public security.”

“So, the opposition chief has expressed solidarity with terrorist activities and criticised the members of the law-enforcing agencies.”

About Khaleda’s remarks regarding the arson attacks on Hindus in different districts, Hanif said: “She has been dishing out falsehood like the past to cause provocation.”