‘Watch out for imposters’

Protestors at Ganajagaran Mancha in Shahbagh on Thursday alleged those who had assisted the Pakistan army during in 1971 in carrying out atrocities on the pretext of ‘saving Islam’ were following the same path in their bid to foil the ongoing war crimes trials.

Leaders of student fronts urged the people of Bangladesh to thwart those who are trying all sorts of convoluted ways to frustrate the civil uprisings.

Chhatra Union President SM Shubho alleged the Jamaat-e-Islami had been using religion as its capital and created a business conglomerate. “It is running a terrorist network,” he said.

Samajtantrik Chhatra Front General Secretary Mehedi Hasan Tomal, Biplobi Chhatra Moitri President Abdur Rauf and other speakers alleged the Jamaat was trying to confuse the people in the name of religion like they did during the War of Liberation.

Pro-government Bangladesh Chhatra League General Secretary Nazmul Alam came down hard on several news organisations for running propaganda against the Shahbagh movement.
Chhatra Union General Secretary Hasan Tarek termed Bangladesh Krishak-Sramik Janata League chief Abdul Kader Siddiqui “new Razakar”.

“Kader Siddiqui is uttering slander against the War of Independence on behalf of the Razakars. We are grateful to him, for he had fought in the War of Liberation. The freedom fighters are not always freedom fighters but the Razakars always remain Razakars,” he added.

The rally kicked off at 3pm although the main programme began an hour later with recitation from the Qur’an.

The mass uprising entered into the 17th day after it began with the second war crimes tribunal of Bangladesh sentencing Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Molla to life in prison for crimes against humanity during the War of Independence. Thousands of people, mostly youths, hit the streets across Bangladesh demanding capital punishment for all convicted war criminals.

Fresh demonstration plans are expected to come from the rally.

The unprecedented movement that began on Feb 5 at the Shahbagh intersection, now known as the Prajanma Chattar, has spread across Bangladesh. Hundreds of thousands of people across the country are also demonstrating over the same demands.