BNP planted “poisonous tree of graft” in Bangladesh: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said the
past BNP government planted the “poisonous tree of corruption” and Bangladesh
is now bearing its brunt.

“The meaning of power to the BNP is making money through graft and the
country is now paying the price of the poisonous tree (of corruption) which
they planted during their five-year misrule,” she said.

While presiding over a virtual discussion, Sheikh Hasina, also the Awami
League president, said her government is unearthing their (BNP) corruption
one after another and arresting those involved in it.

The premier accused again the BNP-Jamaat alliance of perpetrating the
barbaric grenade attack on an Awami League rally in 2004, saying that
killings are the habit of the BNP.

“(Actually) the habit of the BNP is killings … they don’t believe (in
the country’s) independence and the spirit of the liberation war,” she said.

Bangladesh Awami League (AL) arranged the virtual discussion at its
central office at Bangabandhu Avenue here this morning marking the 16th
anniversary of the gruesome grenade attack on an AL anti-terrorism rally in
the capital on August 21, 2004.

The prime minister joined the discussion through a videoconference from
her official Ganabhaban residence.

 

AL General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul
Quader delivered the introductory speech at the discussion, while party’s
Publicity and Publication Secretary Dr Abdus Sobhan Golap moderated it.

Other central leaders of the party were present on the dais at the party
office.

At the outset of the meeting, a minute’s silence was observed as a mark of
profound respect to the memory of the martyrs of the August 21 grenade attack
and the martyrs of the August 15 carnage.

Twenty-four people including the then Women Affairs Secretary of Awami
League and wife of late President Zillur Rahman were killed and over 500
others injured and many of them became crippled for life in the August 21
attack.

By the grace of the Almighty, the then opposition leader and incumbent
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other front ranking AL leaders narrowly
escaped the carnage.

Citing the unbridled corruption committed by the BNP-Jamaat nexus, the
prime minister said: “We see that they’re now uttering tall talks (against
graft). But they forgot that Bangladesh became champion for the five
consecutive times in corruption in the world … everybody knows it well.”

Hinting at Tarique Rahman, son of BNP Chief Khaleda Zia, Sheikh Hasina said
the BNP made such a big amount of money that one of the convicts of the
August 21 grenade attack is leading a lavish life abroad.

“We can’t lead such a life, but they can do it … from where they’re
getting this money and (it’s heard) they’re collecting money from ‘juar adda’
(gathering of gambling),” she said.

The premier said Khaleda Zia after assuming office established reign of
terror across the country following the footprints of her husband military
dictator Ziaur Rahman.

She said Ziaur Rahman rewarded the Bangabandhu’s killers by giving postings
them to Bangladesh missions abroad.

“Ziaur Rahman was very close to killers Farook and Rashid it was revealed
from their interviews they (Farook-Rashid) gave to different media including
BBC and it’s also clear like the daylight that Zia had a link with the
killers later,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina said Zia’s wife Khaleda Zia, after coming to power, staged
the August 21 grisly grenade attack and her son Tarique Rahman was involved
in it.

“The plots and where and how they hatched conspiracies to commit the attack
were unearthed from the confession of those who carried out the attack,” she
said.

Sheikh Hasina mentioned that some days before the rally, Begum Zia had said
that the Awami League will not be able to go to power in 100 years and I
would never be the prime minister or even the leader of the opposition in
future.

“How Khaleda Zia made such a forecast. Because their conspiracies were to
kill me, otherwise they could not be made anything. If we follow their
comments, these plots we come out,” she said.

The premier said Awami League arranged the rally in front of the party
office on August 21, 2004 for peace and in protest against terrorist
activities of the militants across the country including an attack on the
then British high commissioner at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal (R) in
Sylhet.

Recalling the terrific scene of grenade attack, Sheikh Hasina, who was the
leader of the opposition in parliament at the time, said the party leaders
and activists including Mohammad Hanif saved her by creating a human shield.

“Thirteen grenades were hurled at the makeshift dais on a truck and
two/three more grenades remained unexploded,” she said.

Holding the BNP government responsible for destroying the evidence of the
grenade attack, Sheikh Hasina questioned that if the BNP was not involved in
the carnage, why they damaged the evidence?

After the grenade attack, the city corporation whose mayor was Sadeq
Hossain Khoka washed the entire area by pouring water to erase all evidence,
the premier said.

“Khaleda Zia sacked an army officer who wanted to keep an unexploded
grenade as an evidence … it’s meaning that they did not want to keep a
single evidence of the attack,” she said.

 

BSS