Tahsina Rushdir Luna, Member of Parliament for Sylhet-2 (Biswanath and Osmani Nagar) and wife of missing BNP leader M Ilias Ali, has called for answers regarding the whereabouts of her husband, more than a decade after his disappearance in 2012.
Speaking in the National Parliament on Monday, Luna raised the issue during a discussion on the President’s speech in the first session of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad.
She urged the government to address cases of enforced disappearances, directing her remarks to the prime minister, the home minister and the law minister.
M Ilias Ali, a senior leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), went missing on the night of April 17, 2012, from Dhaka’s Banani area along with his personal driver, Ansar Ali. No trace of either has been found since. Allegations have persisted that he was a victim of enforced disappearance during the previous Awami League government.
Drawing special attention to the matter, Luna said families of the disappeared, including Ilias Ali and Suman Parvez, continue to seek answers about the fate of their loved ones.
“It has been more than a year since we became free from fascism—nearly one and a half years—yet we still do not know where they are,” she said. “We have raised this issue in different forums, but we still do not know their whereabouts or their fate.”
Addressing the Speaker, she added: “Through you, I want to know the whereabouts and fate of all those who have been disappeared, including Ilias Ali.”
Luna also demanded justice for those responsible for enforced disappearances and called for rehabilitation measures to support families facing financial hardship due to such incidents.
In addition, she urged the government to recognise individuals who were killed or disappeared over the past 17 years as “July fighters.”
Thanking the President, Luna said he had highlighted the role of the past 17 years of “fascist rule” and presented an accurate picture of enforced disappearances and killings.
She expressed hope that, under the leadership of Tarique Rahman, such incidents would be eliminated and a more just and prosperous Bangladesh established.
