BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Friday questioned why the Awami League should not be allowed to engage in politics under the leadership of individuals with a clean image.
Rizvi raised the question while distributing Eid gifts to the poor and destitute in the capital’s Faidabad area.
“There is a lot of discussion about whether the Awami League will be able to do politics, but there is no talk about whether those responsible for mass killings will be brought to justice,” he said.
He emphasized that if criminals within the Awami League are prosecuted, and if the people then decide to give the party a chance to engage in politics, no one should oppose it.
“If individuals leading the Awami League have no involvement in crimes, the killing of students, looting or laundering public money, then why can such an Awami League not engage in politics?” he asked.
However, the BNP leader insisted that Awami League leaders and their associates involved in killings and oppression must be brought to justice.
“Did people not see who committed the mass killings? Which police officer, which OC, which AC and which DC played a role in it? Which Awami League leader ordered the bloodshed during the mass movement? Which Awami League leader ordered the destruction and suppression of the movement? This trial must be ensured without delay,” he said.
Rizvi also expressed frustration that those who laundered money, as well as those responsible for killing children and teenagers, have not yet been tried.
“Why have we not tried those who killed more than 200 children, teenagers, young students, workers and rickshaw pullers? We must ensure exemplary punishment for them,” he added.
The BNP leader also cast doubt on whether Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina truly believes in Allah, suggesting that her god is money.
"A person whose god is money cannot do good work, as they can only indulge in looting and siphoning off money," he said.
Rizvi claimed that much of the looting and financial misappropriation was carried out by Sheikh Hasina, her relatives, and her favoured businessmen and their associates.
“Let us all ensure that these murderers, who not only killed the democratic system but also destroyed all institutions, sold the independence of Bangladesh, and killed countless children, adolescents, youths and workers to stay in power, are brought to justice,” the BNP leader said.
He said that in a democratic country, everyone’s right to engage in politics should be determined through democratic methods and practices.
Rizvi called for justice for those involved in fascism, as well as those who collaborated with it and benefited from it, so that fascism would never rise again.
