National Parliament Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, Bir Bikram, on Saturday said that ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina was the mastermind behind enforced disappearances and killings during her tenure.
He made the remarks while addressing a view-exchange meeting organized by members of Nagorik Somaj (civil society) in Lalmohan.
Describing Sheikh Hasina as the ‘world's best actress’, Hafiz Uddin alleged that she used to invite relatives of people who had disappeared or been killed to Ganabhaban, console them and assure them that their loved ones would return, despite knowing their whereabouts.
"Based on the evidence and testimonies of disappeared persons before the International Crimes Tribunal, it has been proved to the people that Sheikh Hasina was the world's best actress and herself the mastermind behind enforced disappearances and killings," he said.
The Speaker further alleged that a barrister had been kept handcuffed and confined in an "Ayna Ghar" for eight years and was released after Hasina fled the country.
Referring to corruption during the previous Awami League government, Hafiz Uddin said that a pillow was priced at Tk60,000 and a curtain at Tk42,000 under the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project.
He also alleged that a former state minister for land had amassed 360 houses in London through embezzlement.
The Speaker said such irregularities would no longer be tolerated and expressed hope that Bangladesh would become a country of transparency, accountability and justice under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.