Nazrul Islam Khan: Khaleda Zia could have collected Tk2 crore any time she wanted

Claiming that BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia could have collected Tk2 crore any time she wanted, Standing Committee member of BNP Nazrul Islam Khan said: "If she once said she needed Tk2 crore, the general population of Bangladesh would have given it to her." Nazrul Islam raised these questions during a discussion session organized by Democratic Movement at the National Press Club on Wednesday. Arguing that Khaleda Zia would never steal money from orphans, for which she was convicted in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case, Nazrul added: "She can get Tk2 crore everyday if she wants." He further said: "Even before the verdict was declared, the Prime Minister said that justice would be served to Khaleda for stealing from orphans. "Ershad said she [Khaleda Zia] would be sent to the old central jail in Nazimuddin Road," continued Nazrul Islam Khan. "These are all signs of political vengeance." He also claimed that the ones who had accused the BNP chairperson of being guilty in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case, were made the investigators on it. "Her trial was not done in an open court," the standing committee member said. "Only one witness among the 32 witnesses testified in the court. The rest of them did not say anything against Khaleda Zia. Harun-ur-Rashid, the person who accused her, was the one made responsible for investigating the case, and obviously he would speak against her." Nazrul Islam Khan also demanded that the current government could not damage BNP by sending Khaleda Zia to jail. Instead, countrywide, all the party members had become more coordinated, and they would not participate in the next election without her. "Before, she was only 'Madam'," claimed Nazrul. "Now she has become the 'mother' of the nation." Other than Nazrul, President of Democratic Movement Shahadat Hossain Selim, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Barkatullah Bulu, BNP Student Affairs Secretary Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie, BNP Central leader Abu Naser Muhammad Rahmatullah, and others were present during the discussion session.  This article was first published on banglatribune.com