Dhaka, Feb 8 (Just News): Acting Chairperson of BNP Tarique Rahman on Thursday demanded for immediate release of BNP Chief and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.
The acting chairperson made this demand in a statement following the jail sentence pronounced by the Dhaka court against Khaleda Zia.
Tarique Rahman said today Bangladesh has lost all semblance of political and judicial fairness. There is an outright escalation of totalitarianism from the ruling party. It has been proven today that the judiciary process cannot be trusted to delve out a fair trial. Association with the ruling party is what grants political, legal, economic and ethical immunity in Bangladesh today. Anything else is deemed unacceptable.
The ruling party has targeted an ex-Prime Minister who has always loved and respected the country and its people in a politically motivated verdict, he said.
The acting chairperson said, where the members and associates of the ruling party’s heinous crimes and odious acts on the citizens of Bangladesh are ignored and brushed aside every day, the principled and innocent leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Begum Khaleda Zia, has been dragged into a reckless show trial by the ruling party. She has dedicated her entire life to the betterment of the country. Her sacrifice is an example to the democracy loving people of Bangladesh.
He said elections are nearly upon the people of Bangladesh, who strive for and thrive in a free democratic nation, not an authoritarian one-party state. This political assassination by the just hands of the judiciary against Begum Khaleda Zia is simply the fear the ruling party has regarding its place in the hearts and minds of the people.
They are violating the rights of free speech, of protest and of the freedom of information and from censorship. Today there is politicization in every inch of the government. Ordinary citizens have been imprisoned by this dictatorial regime, he added.
The acting chairperson said they are making a mockery of the honorable institutions of government and of the intelligence and independence of Bangladeshi citizens. I firmly believe that only the democracy loving people of Bangladesh can bring back the country from such dark and dangerous times.
(Justnews/ys/2200)
