Kolkata:
US Awami League Vice President Dr Rabbi Alam has raised concerns over the current situation in Bangladesh, stating that the country is under attack and urging the international community to intervene. Speaking to the news agency ANI in Kolkata, Alam, a close aide of ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, thanked India for providing the ‘alignment’ for shelter.
He further thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing a safe travel passage for Sheikh Hasina.
“Bangladesh is under attack, and it needs to be addressed by the international community. A political uprising is fine, but that is not what has been going on in Bangladesh. This is a terrorist uprising… Many of our leaders are sheltered here in India, and we are very thankful to the Indian government for providing the alignment. I also thank PM Narendra Modi for providing a safe travel passage for our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. We are thankful to the people of India,” he said.
“We want to ask the Bangladesh Advisor to step down and go back to where he came from,” he added.
Alam exuded confidence in Sheikh Hasina’s return as Prime Minister of Bangladesh. He further stated that the country’s young generation has made a mistake and has been ‘manipulated’.
“… Sheikh Hasina is coming back as the Prime Minister. The young generation has made a mistake, but that’s not their fault; they have been manipulated…,” said Alam.
This week, a court in Dhaka ordered the seizure of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Dhanmondi residence, ‘Sudasadhan,’ and some other properties owned by her family members, who are in exile in India.
An official said that at the same time, the court ordered the seizure of 124 bank accounts belonging to her family.
Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Zakir Hossain Ghalib issued the order on Tuesday following an application by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Sheikh Hasina’s husband, the late nuclear scientist MA Wazed Miah, was nicknamed Sudha Miah. The house, ‘Sudhasadan, was named after him.
In addition to Sheikh Hasina, some other properties have been seized, owned by her son Sajib Wazed Joy, daughter Saima Wazed Putul, sister Sheikh Rehana, and her daughters, Tulip Siddique and Radwan Mujib Siddique.
On February 6, Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a strong protest with the Indian government over the “false and fabricated” comments and statements continuously being made on different platforms, including social media, by the country’s former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, aimed at instigating instability.
Through a protest note handed over to the Acting High Commissioner of India in Dhaka, the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that it conveyed the government’s deep concern, disappointment, and serious reservation, as such statements are hurting the people’s sentiments.
Bangladesh has requested the Government of India to immediately take appropriate measures, in the spirit of mutual respect and understanding, to stop Hasina from making such “false, fabricated and incendiary statements” using social media and other communications while she is in India, the statement said.
In the month of January, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) issued an arrest warrant against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and 10 others, including her former Defence Adviser Major General (retired) Tarique Ahmed Siddique and former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed, according to a report by Daily Star. The warrants relate to two cases involving allegations of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.
The orders were issued by the tribunal, led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Majumdar, following two petitions filed by the prosecution seeking the arrest of the 11 individuals.
On August 5, a student-led movement ousted Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, after weeks of protests and clashes that killed over 600 people. Hasina, 77, fled to India, and an interim government led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus was formed.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)