Veteran politicians and columnists in a webinar said August 15, 1975 carnage and gruesome grenade attack on Awami League rally on August 21, 2004, are sewed in a single thread and the plotters behind both the incidents are still hatching conspiracies, reports BSS .
They called for forming a truth commission like South Africa to identify the masterminds behind these barbaric acts.
The United Kingdom unit of Awami League organized the webinar last night marking the August 21 grenade attacks with its president Sultan Mahmud Sharif in the chair.
Veteran journalist and litterateur Abdul Gaffar Chowdhury, Awami League advisory council member and 14-party alliance spokesperson Amir Hossain Amu, Awami League Joint General Secretary and Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud, Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, Awami League Joint General Secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Organizing Secretary SM Kamal Hossain and Office Secretary and Prime Minister’s special assistant Barrister Biplob Barua took part in the webinar.
UK unit AL general secretary Syed Sazedur Rahman Faruk conducted the event.
“Attacks of August 15, 1975, and August 21, 2004, are sewed in a single thread. Only the frontline attackers were brought to justice, but the persons who masterminded both the attacks have remained undetected. It is necessary to form a truth commission like South Africa to identify the masterminds. Or else they will continue the conspiracy to eliminate Awami League,” said Abdul Gaffar Chowdhury.
Gaffar Chowdhury said Sheikh Hasina has been able to give Awami League a firm footing. That’s why the killers started a new conspiracy to kill Sheikh Hasina. Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman, her advisor Haris Chowdhury and Jamaat’s Mostafizur Rahman were behind the attack of August 21, 2004, he added.
Amir Hossain Amu said the attacks on Sheikh Hasina on August 21 was carried out under the government’s patronization in a way of Mostaque-Zia clique that wanted to turn Bangladesh into a neo-Pakistan by killing Father of the Nation.
Information Minister Hasan Mahmud termed the killing of August 21 as a planned act. On that day, the grenade attack was carried out to kill the then leader of the Opposition Sheikh Hasina and other party leaders aimed at making the Awami League bankrupt.
“That incident took place in broad daylight . . . at that time Sheikh Hasina was the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and the President of the largest political party in Bangladesh,” he added.
The Information Minister said, “The defeated forces of 1971, who did not want the independence of this country, had killed the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on August 15, 1975. On August 21, 2004 with the direct help of Hawa Bhaban, a grenade attack was carried out to kill Sheikh Hasina. Everything has been unearthed through investigation afterwards”.
“The grenade attack was carried out under the direction of Tarique Rahman and Khaleda-Nizami government directly helped in this regard. The then mayor of Dhaka Sadek Hossain Khoka destroyed evidences from the spot”, he said.
“A military officer of that time, Major Shams, was fired for leaving an unexploded grenade as evidence of the incident. ‘Joj Mia drama’ was also arranged. Even a condemnation motion was not allowed to be placed in parliament,” he added.
“Ziaur Rahman had killed hundreds of freedom fighters and army officers and later, Khaleda Zia could not come out of the politics of killing and coup. In continuation of this, grenade attack was carried out on August 21,” said the minister.
“It was not the only attempt on the life of Sheikh Hasina . . . but attempts were made for 19 times to kill her,” he said.
