Murad resigns as state minister amid criticism after slur on women

Md Murad Hassan of the Awami League on Tuesday resigned from the post of state minister for information and broadcasting amid protests and condemnation from various political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, for his derogatory remarks about women.

Murad submitted his resignation a day after prime minister Sheikh Hasina asked him to do so following his leaked conversations that drew widespread criticisms.

‘State minister Murad Hassan has sent his resignation letter through his public relations officer. The prime minister on Monday asked him to resign as some of his recent statements and activities have embarrassed the government and the party as well,’ information and broadcasting minister Hasan Mahmud told reporters at his office.

The Cabinet Division later in a gazette notification said that the president had accepted Murad Hassan’s resignation.

The Jamalpur district unit of the ruling Awami League later in the evening relieved the AL lawmaker for Jamalpur-4 of his post of health and population affairs secretary in the unit for his abusive remarks.

‘We have stripped Murad Hassan of his post in the Jamalpur district unit of the Awami League for his comments that have seriously embarrassed our beloved party,’ AL Jamalpur district unit president M Baqui Billah told New Age.

Baqui Billah said that they would send a letter to the party central committee with the recommendation to take the ‘final decision’ against Murad.

Murad was the first to be asked to quit the present cabinet of Sheikh Hasina, her third consecutive government, which took over on January 7, 2019.

Initially inducted as the state minister for health, he was later appointed the state minister for information and broadcasting on May 19, 2019.

Murad, who flew to Dhaka from Chattogram on Tuesday, tendered his ‘voluntary’ resignation to the prime minister citing personal reasons, according to his resignation letter submitted to the Cabinet Division at around 3:00pm by his public relations officer Mohammad Gias Uddin.

A photocopy of his first resignation letter having a wrong mention of the date of his joining, which was emailed to his office for submission, was not received by the Cabinet Division earlier in the day, according to officials.

Information minister Hasan said that he had noticed some changes in Murad in the past two-three months.

Without elaborating, Hasan, also an AL joint general secretary, said that state minister Murad had been different for last few months from what he was earlier.

Asked whether the AL would take any action against Murad, Hasan said that the organisation would take a decision about his party membership in a meeting of the party forum.

About his fate as a Member of Parliament from the AL, Hasan said that he was elected MP by the people (of his constituency) and so it would not be easy to remove him from the post.

The minister thanked Murad for his cooperation in carrying out the ministry’s activities and wished him good health.

Hours after his resignation, the BNP demanded immediate arrest of Murad.

On Monday, the main opposition BNP demanded that Murad must resign from the cabinet for using abusive words against party chair Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman and his daughter Zaima Rahman.

Murad made the remarks in a social media interview on December 4 that went viral.

The Detective Branch might ask Murad Hassan to appear at the DB office on Minto Road for interrogation over a leaked cellphone conversation between him and Dhallywood actress Mahiya Mahi, said DMP DB joint commissioner Harun-or-Rashid.

He told reporters on his office premises that they had also talked with Dhallywood actor Mamnun Hasan Emon about the leaked phone conversation between the now-former state minister Murad Hassan and film actress Mahiya Mahi.

Emon visited the DB office on Monday night.

‘We talked about the cellphone conversation and tried to find out whether it was leaked from Emon’s cellphone,’ said DB officer Harun.

A phone conversation of the junior minister with actor Emon and actress Mahiya Mahi recently went viral on social media.

In that audio clip, Murad made ‘derogatory comments’ on the actress, threatened her and made an alleged indecent proposal to her.

In separate statements on Monday, socio-cultural organisations and rights groups also condemned Murad, saying that his comments on women contradicted his oath as a state minister.

Murad told the BBC Bangla Service on Monday that he did not do any wrong by making the remarks.

New Age