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Bangladesh

BNP begins hunger strike seeking Khaleda’s release

2018-02-15

[Dhaka Tribune] BNP leaders and activists have started observing a 6-hour hunger strike in Dhaka, demanding the release of its Chairperson Khaleda Zia from jail. I had a six hour hunger strike last night. I slept right through it. The members of BNP started the hunger strike as part of its countrywide program on Wednesday morning. The program began around 10am in front of the Jatiya Press Club. It will continue until 4pm. Several Hundred leaders and activists, including party standing committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, joined the programme amid tight security by police.

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Bangladesh

'Militant financiers to face music'

2016-02-01

The government would soon take legal action against the persons and organizations responsible for funding murderous Moslems in the country, Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu said yesterday. "We held a series of meetings on bad boy financing and identified a number of financiers. Soon we will take punitive action against some of them based on the proven allegations," Amu, also the chief of the cabinet committee on law and order, told news hounds. He said that details of the financiers would be made public later. The minister also said that they were working to address the legal loopholes so that the detained murderous Moslems cannot get bail easily. "We will also ensure that the identified criminals do not enjoy unauthorised facilities inside the jails. We have learnt that the local civil surgeons favour the criminals and bring them outside the jail in the name of better treatment. Sometime they suggest that the criminals be sent abroad in parole," Amu added. The rise in drug trafficking and abuse was also discussed in the meeting attended by Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, LGRD Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon, Senior Home Secretary Dr Mozammel Haque, Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Hoque, BGB Director General Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed and high officials of other law enforcement agencies. Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed expressed frustration for not achieving the desired goal of containing drugs business. He said that the law enforcers had seized huge consignments of drugs, especially yaba pills, and jugged Book 'im, Mahmoud! some criminals, but they were yet to bring the situation under control. He suggested that stern action be taken against the godfathers to bring a visible change, meeting sources said. Later, the meeting decided that necessary action would be taken against the persons responsible for drug smuggling disregarding their identities or political affiliations. Amu claimed that the government was successful in curbing phensidyle smuggling due to stern action by local administrations, Border Guard Bangladesh and Indian government. "The Indian government is assisting us regarding the issue. They have shutdown a number of phensidyle factories, set up along the border, as per the list provided by us," the minister added. The meeting also discussed the issue of blogging platforms and religious fanatics instigating attacks on secular activists. The participants unanimously agreed that action must be taken for hurting religious sentiment through wrtite-ups and for giving false explanation of Islam to incite militancy. Amu also said that the law enforcers were on high alert to ensure tight security during the Amar Ekushey book fair.

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Bangladesh

BNP, allies count on Hefajat clout

2013-06-14

[Bangla Daily Star] The BNP-Jamaat-led 18-party opposition wants Qawmi madrasa-based Hefajat-e Islam as an ally at the next general elections in order to exploit religion and win as many votes as possible capitalising on the people's Islamic sentiment. The alliance has minimised distances with the Hefajat in the course of the last four months' programmes against Shahbagh youths, labelling them anti-Islamic and atheists. "Now we want to make further progress based on recent understandings," said a source in the alliance. "We want to wipe out all differences with the Hefajat to make them our ally in the upcoming elections." The opposition's goal of allying itself with the Hefajat is to bag the votes of its followers across the country and get them in its polls campaigns, bringing to the fore the "anti-Islam atheist" issue, the source added. Harun Izhar Chowdhury, research and training secretary of Hefajat, told The Daily Star Wednesday, "Our movement is against anti-Islam atheists. "If our movement influences the upcoming national elections, we have nothing to do." He added if the present government doesn't meet the Hefajat's 13-point demand, definitely the "atheist" issue will remain a subject for discussion at polls time. "We have no specific plan yet for the elections. We will not ask voters to vote for the BNP or the 18-party alliance or any other party. But, of course, we will continue to ask the people not to vote for atheists and the supporters of atheists," Harun said. "We are even asking people to boycott our enemies socially," the Hefajat leader said, adding, "Anti-Islamic atheists are our enemies." Harun said, "It is not our concern as to who will be benefited and who will be the loser in the elections because of our campaign. We will just continue our movement for Islam." Another leader of the Hefajat, wishing anonymity, said a decision on its next course of action was pending because of Qawmi madrasa exams scheduled to end by the Ramadan. Meantime, the 18-party alliance source said an informal effort was going on to ensure Hefajat's support at the next parliament elections for the BNP-led alliance. The source observed that many of the Hefajat followers did not turn up to cast their ballots in the last elections as they do not believe in elections or democracy and many did not vote for the BNP and Jamaat. So the BNP-Jamaat alliance wants to capture this vote bank at the next parliamentary elections, likely to be held at the end of this year or the beginning of 2014. Contacted yesterday, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, member of the BNP standing committee, said his party supported some of the demands of the Hefajat. "We in principle supported Hefajat in its movement." So, he added, it is quite natural that Hefajat will lend its moral support to the 18-party alliance in the next parliamentary elections. Hefajat, launched on January 10, 2010 to oppose the education policy and amendments which were in the spirit of the original 1972 constitution, was not on the scene when the Shahbagh movement started on February 5. The Islamist group then took centre stage in recent days as an opposite force to the Shahbagh Gonojagoron Mancha pressing for the maximum punishment for war criminals. Its presence was felt with the February 15 killing of Rajib, a blogger who was branded an atheist. Hefajat was known as anti-Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... , a key component of the 18-party alliance. Still, it has enjoyed open support from the opposition in making its anti-Shahbagh programmes a success. The top-brass of the Jamaat, historically known as an anti-liberation force and patron of communal politics, is behind bars on war crimes charges. The Shahbagh activists, including online activists and bloggers, all along have demanded banning the Jamaat.

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Bangladesh

BNP behind bars

2013-04-10

Finds it hard to hold political programmes as over 50 active central leaders in jail The crackdown on main opposition BNP has plunged the party into a temporary leadership crisis, as more than its 50 central leaders, including the acting secretary general, are now in jail. The situation has put the opposition in a quandary. Many of its activists are confused about the fate of the ongoing anti-government agitation, as almost all the leaders active on the street have been put behind bars in less than a month. Against such backdrop, BNP has asked its young leaders to stay safe from arrests, said party's senior leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain yesterday. He said his party would step up the ongoing agitation and the legal battle to free their detained leaders. And especially the hartals... Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, some political analysts and opposition leaders observed that the crackdown would not yield positive result; rather deteriorate the situation further by closing the window for resolving the crisis through talks. On Sunday, eight senior BNP leaders, including its acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir who had earlier been put behind bars twice in less than a year, were denied bail and sent to jail. They have been charged with torching vehicles and assaulting police during opposition's agitation. Chances of their coming out soon is lean, as a Dhaka court yesterday fixed April 21 to hear the bail petition filed by the defendants. On March 11, a total of 148 BNP leaders, including opposition Chief Whip Zainul Abdin Farroque, joint secretary generals Rizvi Ahmed and Amanullah Aman, had been detained in two cases in connection with vandalising vehicles and assaulting police. They have also been denied bail twice. On Sunday night, law enforcers detained another BNP Joint Secretary General Salahuddin Ahmed, who had been speaking against the government and announcing the party's agitation programmes in absence of Fakhrul. "The party is facing a temporary leadership vacuum," said Khandaker Mosharraf, adding that the government had made the political situation worse by launching the crackdown. Meanwhile, Home Minister Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir claimed that those who had been put behind bars were facing specific charges of arson, homemade bomb blasts and vandalism. State Minister for law Qamrul Islam, however, alleged the senior leaders of BNP of conspiring to destabilise the state organs. They're both right...

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Bangladesh

BNP to enforce 36-hr hartal Tuesday

2013-04-09

DHAKA: After the observance of a daylong hartal by Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh throughout the country, the BNP led 18-party opposition alliance is going to enforce another spate of hartal for 36-hour shutdown since 6:00am on Tuesday demanding unconditional release of their leaders. This will work about as well as the last one... The non-stop hartal on Tuesday and Wednesday was also called demanding the withdrawal of all “false cases” filed against alliance leaders, holding of the next general election under a non-party caretaker government (CG) and protesting the government indulged ongoing genocide and for immediate step-down of the government to protect the country and its people. BNP join secretary general Salahuddin Ahmed announced the non-stop hartal programme shortly after eight top leaders of BNP including its acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir were sent to jail on Sunday. Senior leaders of 18-party alliance including BNP standing committee member Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain and acting secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami Rafiqul Islam Khan on Monday called upon the leaders and activists of their respective parties as well as the alliance to make the hartal a success. The government has taken strong security measures to maintain law and order and foil any possible sabotage during the tow-day long hartal. As part of the security measures, Border Guard of Bangladesh was deployed in the Dhaka and different districts in the country. Besides, additional law enforcers including police and RAB were deployed in the city to control law and order during hartal hours ending 6:00pm on Wednesday.

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Bangladesh

State under siege

2013-04-06

[Bangla Daily Star] A beleaguered government has made its first concession to its detractors. With the law enforcers now going after some bloggers and taking them into custody, the government has made two things clear, one openly and the other indirectly. The first is that it is quite desperate about preventing the extreme rightwing political and religious groups from creating a situation that could only worsen matters for itself. The second is that by clamping down on the bloggers and therefore on the Projonmo Chattar movement, it has disappointed the nation's secular forces hugely. The disappointment could not have been expressed better than what Rashed Khan Menon had to say in his reaction. For him, there is an inherent contradiction in the government's prosecuting the war crimes trial and at the same time caving in to the bigots' demand that "atheists" be dealt with firmly. Unsurprisingly, a very large number of secular-oriented citizens agree with Menon. A particular difficulty with a besieged government handing out concessions to the opposition is that there is hardly any end to such slipping away of moral authority. One concession leads to another, and then another. And so it goes on. Some recent instances of concessions not really helping governments in distress, despite the conditions being at quite a variance with those pertaining in Bangladesh today, might come in handy. In 1977, having triumphed (with a good deal of rigging thrown into a process he would have won anyway) at the elections, Pakistain's Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto ...9th PM of Pakistain from 1973 to 1977, and 4th President of Pakistain from 1971 to 1973. He was the founder of the Pakistain Peoples Party (PPP). His eldest daughter, Benazir Bhutto, would also serve as hereditary PM. In a coup led by General Zia-ul-Haq, Bhutto was removed from office and was executed in 1979 for authorizing the murder of a political opponent... was swamped with demands that fresh elections be called. He eventually reached a deal with the rightwing Pakistain National Alliance on the evening of 4 July that year. At dawn the next day, the army overthrew his government. Earlier, in 1974, Pakistain's Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... and other fanatical groups pushed the Ahmadiyya community into a corner and loudly demanded that the Bhutto government declare the community as non-Moslem. Bhutto did as asked. And then came other demands, all of which the Bhutto administration acquiesced in. Those concessions did not help Bhutto survive. An embattled Shah of Iran, in his final year as monarch, went on a spree of concessions to the holy mans. He dismissed his ministers, tossed in the calaboose Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! his respected Prime Minister Amir Abbas Hoveyda and installed his long-time critic Shahpour Bakhtiar as head of a new government. Such a retreat only emboldened Ayatollah Khomeini and his followers, who made it clear their goal was a capture of power in Tehran. The monarchy collapsed, secular Iran passed into history and the country turned into a closed society. Today, in Bangladesh, the great danger is that the agitation spearheaded by the holy mans and publicly supported by the opposition BNP has pushed the war crimes trials into the background. Into that suddenly empty space has come an assortment of demands that patently militate against constitutional politics and democratic order. Organisations like Hefajat-e-Islam have vowed to bring the country to a standstill. The Jamaat remains conditioned to demonstrations of violence. The BNP, trying to derive as much advantage as possible from the holy mans' agitation, now has a single demand -- the overthrow of the legally established government. Meanwhile, ...back at the Council of Boskone, Helmuth had turned a paler shade of blue. Star-A-Star had struck again... demands have begun to arise from the fundamentalists that secularism be done away with and replaced by invocations to Allah. The fundamentalist assault has cleverly moved from condemnation of the government to an assault on the principles and values of the War of Liberation. The state of Bangladesh is now under threat from those who have already forced one concession from a nervous government. Any more concessions could clear the path to even bigger danger. Where does Bangladesh go from here? The BNP's Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain has spoken of a government conspiracy to impose a state of emergency in the country. The past comes in here again. Indira Gandhi clamped emergency in India in June 1975 when Jayaprakash Narayan asked the military to act against the government. The move discredited her, but it restored order in the state. In December 1974, the government of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, confronted with demands for a "Moslem Bangla", extreme leftwing lawlessness, creeping rightwing-engineered chaos and rising crime, imposed a state of emergency in Bangladesh. Disorder was rolled back, until conspiracy overturned the state in August 1975. Circumstances today call for a firm yet humane handling of the opposition agitation. The government must not be seen to be caving in to the forces of bigotry and extra-constitutionalism. Preserving the state, with all its original principles intact, must be the priority. The job can be done in line with the constitution.

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Bangladesh

BNP banks on radicals

2013-04-04

[Bangla Daily Star] The BNP is now eagerly looking to the outcome of the radical Islamist groups' April 6 long march which, party leaders say, will largely determine its next course of action to intensify the one-point movement to oust the government. BNP policymakers say that if Hefajat-e Islam, organiser of the long march, enforces nonstop hartal ... a peculiarly Bangla combination of a general strike and a riot, used by both major political groups in lieu of actual governance ... s from April 7 in case the government obstructs the march, the BNP-led alliance will also step up tougher agitations. Amid such a tense political situation, the main opposition party is preparing itself for a showdown on April 10 in the capital. Party chief Khaleda Zia Three-term PM of Bangla, widow of deceased dictator Ziaur Rahman, head of the Bangla Nationalist Party, an apparent magnet for corruption ... is expected to announce the next spell of anti-government agitation programmes on the day. "The prevailing political situation will dictate the type of the next agitation programmes," Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, a BNP standing committee member, told The Daily Star yesterday. On lending support to Hefajat-e Islam's long march towards Dhaka, he said: "We have extended our support because the march certainly has its political impact." A series of hartals, road blockades and sit-ins like those by the Shahbagh protesters are under consideration of the BNP-led alliance, insiders say. "We have empowered BNP chief Khaleda Zia to decide the mode of agitation programme," Abdul Latif Nejami, chief of Islamic Oikya Jote, a component of the BNP-led alliance, told The Daily Star on Monday. BNP leaders expect the radical Islamist groups on some point will wage a movement to dislodge the government to realise their demands, as the government can in no way meet all those demands. And if that is the case, the BNP-Jamaat-led alliance will assure them of meeting all their demands, if voted to power, a BNP policymaker said, requesting anonymity. Salafist groups have a 13-point demand, including restoration of the phrase "absolute faith and trust in the Almighty Allah" in the constitution, enactment of a blasphemy law, scrapping the education and women development policies and harsh punishment to "atheist bloggers".

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Bangladesh

BNP plans to close in for the kill

2013-03-25

[Bangla Daily Star] The main opposition BNP plans to make April a turning point for its one-point demand to oust the Awami League-led government by intensifying street agitation through more frequent road blockades and hartal ... a peculiarly Bangla combination of a general strike and a riot, used by both major political groups in lieu of actual governance ... s. As part of this strategy, the party is likely to announce today a 48-hour countrywide hartal for Wednesday and Thursday. A number of party policymakers said the BNP under the banner of the 18-party alliance might go for 48 or 72 hours of hartals and blockades from next month to step up its agitation. If the situation is favourable, the BNP-Jamaat-led alliance might also go for a "March towards Dhaka" programme and agitate in the capital to cripple the government, the policymakers added. According to them, success in April will determine the mode of agitation in May. "The party chief wants to play all-out from now on with no holds barred. So, there may be no break in our agitation from April," said a BNP policymaker, adding that their target was somehow to push the situation beyond the control of the government. BNP chief Khaleda Zia Three-term PM of Bangla, widow of deceased dictator Ziaur Rahman, head of the Bangla Nationalist Party, an apparent magnet for corruption ... yesterday at a rally in Bogra also hinted at demonstrations from Wednesday. She said, "New agitation programmes will be announced tomorrow [today]. The programmes will continue after March 26." Urging party men to remain ready for the march towards the capital, she said, "Come to Dhaka when I call you. We will return home only after the fall of the government." BNP policymakers believe the Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... will be more active on the streets during the opposition's upcoming agitation, as the war crimes tribunals may deliver next month the verdicts in the cases against former Jamaat ameer Ghulam Azam and its assistant secretary general Kamaruzzaman. "We are now struggling for life. The time is ripe. People will enforce any programmes announced by the high command," Abu Taleb Mandal, secretary of Pabna district unit Jamaat, told The Daily Star yesterday. "The grassroots-level workers do not want any pause in the agitation," he added. Against this backdrop, it is obvious that the higher secondary examinees will suffer from the opposition's programmes. The examination is scheduled to start from April 1 and finish towards the end of May. "We will certainly intensify our agitation in April and will not consider any public examinations. They should adjust the schedules with our programmes," BNP big shot Moudud Ahmed told The Daily Star yesterday. Moudud, a member of the BNP national standing committee, said they had been forced to go for tougher agitation by the government's intolerance and hostile attitude towards the opposition. Asked about the upcoming programmes, BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said hartals and blockade are two effective tools of movements in Bangladesh. "The nature of our agitation will depend on the prevailing situation," he told The Daily Star yesterday.

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Bangladesh

BNP slams PM for sharia comments

2012-11-18

[Bangla Daily Star] Two BNP leaders yesterday criticised Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ...Bangla dynastic politician and current Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She has been the President of the Bangla Awami League since 1981. She is the eldest of five children of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh. Her party defeated the BNP-led Four-Party Alliance in the 2008 parliamentary elections. She has once before held the office, from 1996 to 2001, when she was defeated in a landslide... for threatening to implement sharia and alleged that the government intended to create instability in the country by misleading the people. Speaking separately at two programmes, BNP Standing Committee Member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain and BNP acting general secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said it was ironic to listen to the leader of the Awami League talk about implementing sharia. They said the talk on sharia was nothing but an attempt to confuse people. At a human chain in the capital, Mosharraf said the AL has always tried to enhance its image at home and abroad, by claiming to be a secular party. The programme was organised by Shadhinota Forum demanding to know the whereabouts of Ilias Ali, a missing BNP leader. Meanwhile, ...back at the Senate, Odius Sepulcher called for war against the Visigoths... speaking at a programme marking the 36th death anniversary of Maulana Bhasani, organised by BNP, Tangail Unit, Fakhrul said the AL's “double standard policy” has been shown through Hasina's speech. While addressing a meeting of AL Central Working Committee at Gono Bhaban, on November 16, the Prime Minister, said those who had assaulted the police to hinder the war crimes trial could be tried “under the sharia law”. “The government knows how to deal with those who are attacking the police to save the war criminals. Besides, there are alternative means like sharia to try them,” Hasina said

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Bangladesh

Fakhrul among 45 charged

2012-05-11

[Bangla Daily Star] Detectives yesterday pressed charges against 45 leaders and activists of BNP-led 18-party alliance, including BNP acting secretary general, for torching a vehicle near Prime Minister's Office (PMO) during April 29 shutdown. Inspector of the Detective Branch of Police Nurul Amin, also the investigation officer (IO) of the case, submitted the charge sheet to Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court yesterday around 10:45am. The court will decide on May 13 whether it will take into cognisance the charges brought against the accused. BNP, however, termed the cases and the charge sheet "false and politically motivated" and asked the government to withdraw both without any delay. On April 29, two cases had been filed with Tejgaon and Ramna cop shoppes against leaders and activists of 18-party alliance in connection with torching a bus in front of the PMO and a blast at the secretariat on that day. "The government has filed the cases and submitted the charge sheet only to divert public attention from the ongoing anti-government movement, but they won't succeed," said BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain while addressing a human chain in front of Jatiya Press Club. Talking to The Daily Star, defence counsel Masud Ahmed Talukder said the court would not be able to give any order on the charge sheet on May 13, as the third bench of the High Court was yet to pass any order on the dissenting orders of the division bench regarding bail of the 30 accused in the two cases. Of the accused, Mohammad Sohel alias Sohan Miah, conductor of the bus torched; Mohammad Jasim Uddin and Manik Ratan, helpers of the vehicle; Mohammad Kamruzzaman Ratan, former student leader; Mohammad Ismail Khan Shahin, president of Titumir College unit Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal ...student wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)... (JCD); Mohammad Mannan Hossain Shahin, Swechchhasebak Dal president of Mohammadpur Police Station area; and BNP joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed were earlier nabbed Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! and sent to jail. Another accused in the arson case Mahbub Uddin Khokon got bail on May 9 on his surrender before a Dhaka metropolitan magistrate's court till May 20. The IO yesterday showed BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and 36 others as runaways since he [the IO] did not receive the copies of their bail order. The IO also sought issuance of arrest warrant against them and an order to attach their moveable property. Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch, Butch and the Kid finally brought their horses under control... the IO dropped the name of Chhatra Shibir General Secretary Abdur Jabbar as his full address was not found during investigation. He showed 18 people, including the owner and the driver of the vehicle torched as prosecution witnesses. If the charges are proved, the minimum punishment for arson will be two years' rigorous imprisonment while the maximum five years' rigorous imprisonment.

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Bangladesh

BNP to work on public sentiment

2011-04-04

[Bangla Daily Star] Banking on the country's Mohammedan majority population's religious sentiment, BNP-led opposition parties are planning to wage strong agitation in and outside the parliament against the AL-led government's move to amend the constitution. Some opposition alliance leaders said they will leave no stone unturned to portray the government as "anti-Islamic", for its move to uphold secularism in the constitution by deleting the phrase ''absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah''. Because competing with Pakistan on religiosity is demonstrably such a clever idea. The main opposition BNP will try to drum up support of all like minded Islamic political parties to gather pace for the anti-government agitation, they said. According to sources close to the special parliamentary committee for constitutional amendment, it is almost certain that the bill for amending the constitution will propose deletion of the phrase from the preamble and article 8 of the charter, in line with a landmark Supreme Court (SC) verdict. The government however has no plan to put a ban on theocratic politics, neither does it have any plan to alter the state religion status of Islam in the constitution, although the same SC verdict does open up the way for both amendments. The government is refraining from making the two moves to avoid any political turmoil in the country. But the opposition seems not even ready to accept scrapping of the phrase "absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah". "We will not accept the government's move to delete the phrase from the constitution. We will wage agitation in and outside the parliament against it," Moudud Ahmed, a BNP national standing committee member, told The Daily Star yesterday. When his attention was drawn to the SC verdict that upheld secularism, Moudud, also a former law minister, said it is the government's choice whether it will retain the phrase. The phrase ''absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah" was inserted in the constitution by military ruler Ziaur Rahman, also founder of BNP, through a martial law proclamation. In doing so, he deleted the word "secularism", one of the four fundamental state principles in the original constitution of 1972. The SC recently cancelled the fifth amendment to the constitution that had ratified and validated all changes brought to the country's supreme charter through martial law proclamations during the first martial law regime which had begun on August 15, 1975. Cancellation of the Fifth Amendment Act paved the way for the government to bring massive changes to the constitution, and the parliamentary special committee for constitutional amendment has been working to prepare proposals to that effect. BNP did not nominate any of its MPs to work in the special committee formed in July last year. A bill will be placed in the parliament's next session to be convened at the end of April or early May to amend the constitution in light of the SC verdict. The updated version of the constitution printed in February this year by the law ministry following the cancellation of the Fifth Amendment Act already dropped the phrase ''absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah''. BNP-led opposition parties have been strongly criticising the SC for its verdict scrapping the fifth amendment. "We will not compromise if the government hurts the people's religious sentiment by deleting the phrase," former speaker also BNP MP Jamiruddin Sircar told The Daily Star. Addressing a presser on Saturday, Senior Joint Secretary General of BNP Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said his party always stood against actions which could hurt religious sentiments. If BNP wages such an agitation, Jamaat-e-Islami, a major component of BNP-led four party alliance, will join it with enthusiasm, said some Jamaat leaders. Asked about their position on the matter, Jamaat politician AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad said the party will protest if any change to the constitution hurts "the people' religious sentiment". Talking to The Daily Star in the last couple of days, some BNP policymakers said their national standing committee did not discuss the government's move at any formal meeting, but the party's senior leaders have been discussing the issue among themselves. Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, a member of BNP national committee, said they will soon announce their official position regarding the government's move to amend the constitution. He said BNP is working to make a list of possible "controversial changes" the government might try to bring to the constitution. "We will reach a position on the matter on consultation with the party chief," he added. A number of other BNP MPs echoed Mosharraf.

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Bangladesh

Dozens hurt in clashes

2011-02-08

[Bangla Daily Star] At least 83 persons were maimed in sporadic festivities between police and pro-hartal activists across the country during a dawn-to-dusk hartal ... a peculiarly Bangla combination of a general strike and a riot, used by both major political groups in lieu of actual governance ... yesterday. The main opposition BNP enforced the nation wide hartal though most of its senior level leaders and major allies including Jamaat-e-Islami did not take to the street. Law enforcers cordoned off the BNP central office at Naya Paltan since morning. About 15 BNP activists were maimed when police charged truncheons on them at the entrance and ground floor of the office after pickets set a Mishuk (three-wheeler auto-rickshaw) afire around 12:40pm. Police used water cannon to disperse the BNP men and picked up eight from the spot. Cops also obstructed activists while they tried to bring out processions around 9:30am and 11:30am and jugged two. Awami League activists allegedly attacked the Dhandmondi house of BNP's Dhaka district unit President and chairperson's Adviser Abdul Mannan. Stray incidents marked the hartal in several districts including Rajshahi, Barisal, Khulna and Narsingdi, report our correspondents. At least 35 people were maimed in Rajshahi, nine in Khulna and 20 in Joypurhat during festivities between police and picketers. BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain at a press briefing at the party's central office yesterday afternoon declared two-day programme protesting attack and arrest during hartal hours. He claimed law enforcers jugged at least 500 and injured 800 party activists. The party will stage demonstration at city's Muktangon today and across the country tomorrow. BNP leaders Khandaker Delwar Hossain, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Rizvi Ahmed and politicians Zainul Abdin Farroque, Rehana Akhter Ranu, Nilufar Chowdhury Moni, Syeda Asifa Ashrafi Papia and Shammi Akhter, among others, were present in front of the party office. AL, however, said BNP had called the hartal and resorted to violence to hamper preparations for the forthcoming World Cup Cricket and to tarnish the image of the country. "Next time government won't tolerate such activities in the name of hartal and check those strictly," said AL Joint Secretary General Mahbubul Alam Hanif adding, since there was no logic for enforcing hartal, there was no spontaneity in observing it. Most of the shops, schools and business establishments remained closed in the capital. Rickshaws and some passenger buses were found plying on city streets while rail and air communication were normal. Trial proceedings at Dhaka District and Metropolitan Session Judge's courts continued as usual, noted our court correspondent. Chittagong Port operated normally but the delivery of cargos was hampered, said port authority Secretary Farhad Uddin Ahmed. BNP leader Abdul Mannan, his wife and two others were maimed when some unruly youths, riding on at least 25 cycle of violences, attacked his residence around 10:00am, Nasiruddin Ahmed Ashim, son-in-law of Mannan, told The Daily Star. Some of them entered the house premises and vandalised a microbus parked there when Mannan, with his fellow leader Emran Saleh Prince, was taking preparations to bring out a procession. The four received minor injuries as the youths threw brick chips from outside the house and broke the window glasses. Police rushed to the spot but did not restrict the youths, complained Nasiruddin adding, they were chanting 'Joy Bangla' slogan. Police dispersed a number of gatherings at Mohakhali, Shantinagar and Science Laboratory intersections, court premises of Old Dhaka and several other places in the capital. Pickets set a bus ablaze at Suritola around 1:50pm, which was doused by two units of Gulistan Fire Brigade Station. BNP leader Mirza Abbas led a procession in Shantinagar area around 10:15am before police used batons to disperse them. Incensed, activists vandalised a CNG-run auto-ricksaw there. Picketers set fire to a bus and a three-wheeler auto-rickshaw and also damaged a passenger bus in the area around 10:30am. Law enforcers also foiled a procession of Jagannath University unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal near court area, leaving four injured. They also picked up two from the spot. Unidentified persons hurled two molotov cocktails from the rooftop of a building at Shahjahanpur around 9:40am, said Lt Col Rafiqul Islam, commanding officer of Rapid Action Battalion-3. BNP enforced the hartal citing a number of issues including protesting filing of a case against party chairperson following recent clash at Arial Beel in Munshiganj, crash in share market and price hike of essentials.

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