Try ‘razakar’ ministers, leaders: MK Anwar

BNP leader MK Anwar on Sunday demanded that the authorities bring all suspected war criminals, including “some ministers and ruling party leaders”, to book for their role during the War of Liberation in 1971.

Otherwise, he said, “neutrality in the trial process would not be ensured and it would be unfair if it is done out of political vendetta”.

He said the “‘razakar ministers and leaders” should also come under the purview of justice.

The BNP leader, however, stopped short of naming the “razakar ministers and leader”.

“We want trials of war criminals. However, it has to be transparent and of international standard,” Anwar told a protest programme in the city.

The BNP leader repeated his party’s call to restore a non-partisan caretaker government to oversee next general election.

He said it was needed for peaceful handover of power before a “mass revolt surfaced”.

“The government has become isolated because of its misdeeds, administrative mismanagement and corruption,” he said. “There’s still time, understand what people want.”

The programme was organised at the National Press Club premises demanding the whereabouts of BNP’s Organising Secretary Illias Ali who went missing on Apr 10 from Dhaka’s Banani area.

“The government is immersed in corruption up to its neck. They have (even) abandoned Padma Bridge (project) to save top officials. The country has become worse than Pakistan,” he said.

Referring to Illias, he alleged the government had killed 23,000 opposition activists over the past four years.

“Awami League had killed and 40,000 freedom fighters have disappeared,” he alleged.

“They (government) have destroyed the judiciary. No opposition leader is getting fair justice,” he said.

Anwar said “Junior level activists were unleashing a reign of terror and committing corruption, being backed by corrupt high-ups in the ruling Awami League.”

At a separate programme, BNP’s Standing Committee Member ASM Hannan Shah accused the government of pushing the country towards anarchy.

“There is no alternative to non-partisan caretaker government. Otherwise, a resolution will come through (people’s) movement,” Shah, a retired army official, said.bdnews24.com

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