Information and Broadcasting Minister and Awami League Joint General Secretary Dr Hasan Mahmud today said BNP cannot talk about the human rights issue as the party itself is an extreme violator of human rights.

“BNP’s founder had killed a number of people indiscriminately and established his party through bloodshed. BNP had killed innocent people alive through arson attacks in 2013, 2014 and 2015 and the party is doing same subversive activities in 2023 also,” he said.

The minister said this while replying to a query of reporters after unwrapping a book ‘Suhrawardy’ marking the 60th death anniversary of prominent politician Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy at the conference room of Press Information Department at secretariat here.

Author of the book Ahmed Firoz, senior deputy principal information officers Khaleda Begum and Md Abdul Jalil, among others, addressed the programme.

Dr Hasan said the World Human Rights Day will be observed on December 10. But, Bangladesh saw gross violation of human rights through killing Bangabandhu in 1975. Even the then military backed government had enacted Indemnity Ordinance to stop trial of the killing, he said.

He said Ziaur Rahman had killed hundreds of armed force officials and soldiers without any reason to cling to power. Even, many soldiers were hanged prior to their trial and those all are documented, he said.

The minister said twenty two Awami League leaders and activists and two unidentified persons were killed in brutal grenade attacks in a rally of Awami League on August 21 in 2004. But it is regretfully true that the then prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia and her party’s MPs made fun centering the attacks in the parliament, he said.

Replying to another query over BNP-Jamaat’s blockade programme, Dr Hasan said BNP-Jamaat is carrying out arson attacks in the name of waging movement. They handed over their movements to addicts and labourers, he said.

BNP and Jamaat now turned into parties of miscreants, he said, adding the government is determined to eliminate the terrorists.

About the alliance centering the upcoming poll, the information minister said, “It was already announced that the 14-party alliance will take part in the poll jointly and we have always given importance to allies.”

“We have the enough strength, power and support to go to election alone. But we have taken the decision to do election from alliance,” he added.

The minister congratulated Jatiya Party as it gave nomination in 300 seats.

In the programme, Hasan Mahmud extended thanks to the author, saying Suhrawardy was one of the founders of Awami League and he was a polestar in the political arena.

Paying rich tribute to Suhrawardy, the minister said Shaheed Suhrawardy had struggled to establish democracy in his whole life. He started his political carrier with labourers though he was from a novel family, he said.

-BSS.