Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said Khaleda Zia staged the gruesome August 21, 2004 grenade attack when he was the head of the BNP-Jamaat government.
“Returning to power [in 2002], Khaleda Zia staged the grenade attack. Those who were involved in the conspiracy of August 21 grenade attack revealed during probe that Khaleda’s son Tarique Rahman was also involved in the conspiracy,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina made the statement while addressing a discussion marking the anniversary of August 21grenade attack on a peace rally of the Awami League, then the main opposition party, in the capital that left at least 25 people killed and over 500 injured.
The ruling Awami League organised the event at its central office on Bangabandhu Avenue. The Prime Minister presided over the discussion virtually from her official residence Ganabhaban.
The Prime Minister said it would have been impossible to carry out the grenade attack had there been no direct patronage from the then BNP-Jamaat government.
BSS adds: Sheikh Hasina said the BNP government had 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.
The premier said, “(Actually) the habit of the BNP is killings … they don’t believe (in the country’s) independence and the spirit of the liberation war.”
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 begining of the meeting, one 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.
Women Affairs Secretary of Awami League and wife of late President Zillur Rahman was among those killed in the attack.
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 ‘juaradda’ (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 HazratShahjalal (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 .
The prime minister said after the attack on that day, police lobbed tear gas canisters and resorted to lathi (baton) charge on AL leaders and worker instead of rescuing the dead and the injured persons to give a scope to the attackers to flee without trouble.
“Such a barbaric attack could not be staged without the patronage of the then BNP government. The BNP government had made arrangements for the training of the terrorists and created scopes for them to flee abroad,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said the BNP government thought that she was killed in the attack. “But I survived the attack and when the BNP government heard that she didn’t die, they created scopes for four killers to run away,” she said.
Pointing out that many opposition lawmakers were injured in the attack, the prime minister said they were not allowed to utter a single word or discuss the matter in parliament.
“Even we were barred from bringing a resolution in the JatiyaSangsad (JS) to condemn the attack. Rather taking the floor, the then prime minister and leader of the House Khaleda Zia ridiculed with the issue, saying that who’ll kill her (Sheikh Hasina),” she said.
The prime minister said numerous leaders and parliament members of her party were groaning at the hospitals at the time. “But we had no right to discuss the issue in parliament and none was given mike in the House to speak on the matter … had they not been involved in the attack, they could not obstruct in this way,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said the BNP had planned to kill her son SajeebWazed Joy after abducting in the USA and the information came through the FBI investigation.
In the probe, a BNP leader was found guilty and convicted for it and in the court verdict, the names of BNP leader Mahbubur Rahman and ShafikRehmancame out, she said.
The prime minister said the man who was sentenced for the crime had tried to execute the plan in connivance with Tarique Zia. “We couldn’t know it had the FBI not made this investigation and the judgment not been delivered,” she said.
The AL president prayed for eternal peace of the souls of those embraced martyrdom in the August 21 grenade attack.
The prime minister thanked all the leaders and activists of her party and its associate bodies for standing beside the people and providing assistance to them in the present coronavirus situation, responding to her call.
“No political party of the country stood beside the people in such a way,” she said.
In this connection, Sheikh Hasina said many leaders and workers of the party died and got infected with the virus. She prayed for eternal peace of the departed souls.
Describing COVID-19 situation a global problem, the prime minister reiterated her call to all to comply with the health codes to protect themselves from the transmission of the deadly disease.
Sheikh Hasina said Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman liberated the country and his dream was to bring smiles on the faces of the distressed people.
“We’ve advanced a lot (towards the goal). But unfortunately, the coronavirus stalled everything. Despite that we’re striving to advance the country by keeping the wheels of its economy operative,” she said.
Mentioning that attempts on her life were made several times, the prime minister said the Almighty Allah certainly has given some tasks to her by protecting her from the terrible August 21 grenade attack.
“I may continue that works until those are completed, and the Almighty will give that scope to me and we’ll build Sonar Bangla as dreamt by Bangabandhu,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina urged all to pray so that the people of Bangladesh are saved from coronavirus and the pace of development of the country continues.
She said the then BNP-Jamaat government assembled the terrorists and militants in one place, provided training for waging such an attack and gave them a safe passage to flee abroad.
"They (BNP-Jamaatgovt) thought that I had died (in the grenade attack), but when they came to know that I didn’t die they allowed the militants to flee the country," Hasina said.
After the attack, she said, police lobbed teargas shells and charged baton on AL leaders and workers instead of rescuing the victims.
Hasina said even BNP-Jamaat-backed doctors did not attend the injured AL leaders and workers at Dhaka Medical College Hospital and no patient was allowed to enter Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Medical University as it was closed.
"If they (BNP-Jamaat) had not been directly involved in this attack, had they put barricade this way (getting treatment, nab the culprits and destroying evidences)?" she questioned.
The Prime Minister alleged that carrying out killings was their habit as they do not believe in the country's independence and they did not believe in the Liberation War spirit. "Power for them was a tool to make money through corruption," she said.
In this connection, Hasina mentioned that the venom tree that was planted by the BNP-Jamaat clique, Bangladesh is still suffering from that. "After assuming power, we’re uprooting those one by one."
AL general secretary ObaidulQuader also spoke at the programme joined by senior leaders of the party.
The barbaric grenade attack was carried out on an anti-terrorism rally of Awami League on Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital on August 21, 2004 during the BNP-Jamaat government aiming to wipe out the AL leadership.
Twenty-four people, including then president of MohilaAwami League and late President Zillur Rahman’s wife Ivy Rahman, were killed and over 500 others suffered splinter injuries in the grisly attack and many of them became crippled for life.
Sheikh Hasina, the then opposition leader, narrowly escaped the attack but sustained hearing impairment due to the impact of the repeated grenade blasts near the truck-dais of the huge public rally. AL men saved her life creating a human shield surrounding her during the attack.
Referring to some remarks made by Khaleda Zia before the grisly grenade attack and planting of twin bombs — one of 76 kg and another of 84 kg — in Kotalipara, the Prime Minister said, “Before every attack, Khaleda Zia used to say Awami League won’t be able to go to power in 100 years. And right before the grenade attack, she said even Sheikh Hasina can never be the leader of the opposition, let alone the Prime Minister, as she knew beforehand, I would be killed on August 21,” she said.
The then government destroyed the evidence of the gruesome attack while an army officer lost his job as he wanted to preserve an unexploded grenade used in the attack, she said. “They tried to erase all the evidence of the attack.”
Hasina said one army officer wanted to keep one unexploded grenade for evidence and the then Khaleda Zia government sent that officer on forced retirement.
"And all know about a staged drama by the government," she said pointing to the Joj Mia issue which was later proved false.
The Prime Minister said the ruling BNP-Jamaat did not allow AL to discuss the matter in Parliament although many of the injured were MPs and she was the leader of the opposition.
It was not the end, Hasina said, they were hatching a conspiracy to kill her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, after kidnapping. It was revealed by US FBI in their investigation.
A BNP leader there was accused and convicted. The names of BNP leaders Mahbubur Rahman and Shafiq Rehman also came up in the verdict.
