
Bangladesh Nationalist Party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday urged India to extradite ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to Bangladesh to face trial.
‘It is our call to you that you should hand her over to the government of Bangladesh in a legal way. The people of this country have decided to out her on trial. Let her face that trial,’ he said.
The BNP secretary general made this call while talking to reporters after paying tribute to the founding president of the BNP Ziaur Rahman in the city.
He along with two newly inducted members of the BNP Standing Committee -Maj (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and AZM Zahid Hossain- paid tribute by placing a wreath at the grave of president Ziaur Rahman.
Mirza Fakhrul said India did not seem to keep its commitment towards democracy as the country provided shelter to her.
‘Staying there, she has started various plots to thwart the revolution that happened in Bangladesh,’ he alleged.
The BNP secretary general said the people of this country don’t consider her offences as minor.
He said they think her fascist rule has weakened Bangladesh’s independence and hindered the country’s progress for the past 15 years.
During her regime, she made a debt burden of Tk 18 lakh crore for the nation and nearly US 100 billion dollars were siphoned off from the country, said Fakhrul adding that all institutions of the country were destroyed during her misrule.
Mirza Fakhrul also said that the main task of this interim government, which was formed through a revolution and mass upsurge, was to hand over the power to the public representatives by holding an election.
‘But we think it will take some time to clear the garbage the Awami League government created. It will take time to hold a proper and fair election,’ he said.
Replying to a question, the BNP secretary general praised the current interim government’s activities.
‘The work it did in 11 days is undoubtedly commendable,’ he said.
On August 16, BNP vice chairmen Maj (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and AZM Zahid Hossain were inducted into the party’s standing committee, the highest policymaking body.
With the fresh appointment of the duo, the total number of the BNP standing committee members has risen to 16.
The current standing committee members include Khaleda Zia, Tarique Rahman, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Zamiruddin Sircar, Mirza Abbas, Rafiqul Islam Mia (sick and inactive), Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moueen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Salahuddin Ahmed, Selima Rahman, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, Maj (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and Dr AZM Zahid Hossain.
Three posts in the party’s standing committee remain vacant.