Kamal Hossain urges PM to free arrested students

Eminent jurist Kamal Hossain on Friday urged prime minister Sheikh Hasina to unconditionally release before Eid-ul-Azha the students arrested during demonstrations for quota reforms and safe roads, reports UNB.

“The demonstrations for quota reforms and road safety were not against your government. So why don’t you free them (students)?” he questioned while addressing a programme at the National Press Club in the afternoon.

Jatiya Oikya Prokriya, a non-political platform, arranged the programme.

Kamal, convener of the platform and president of Gano Forum, said the constitution of Bangladesh has given its citizens the right to assemble and raise voice. “Reform is a good word. Every civilised society welcomes reform to bring positive changes to a system and the quota reform and road safety movements were logical ones because the students demanded positive changes,” he said.

Mentioning that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman used to praise worthy people and welcome them, he said, “I hope the prime minister will understand these feelings of her father.”

The Jatiya Oikya Prokriya convener also said the elected public representatives are ‘service providers, not rulers. “They shouldn’t forget this spirit of our constitution and they should run the government maintaining these ethics.”

He also expressed his desire to meet the prime minister to talk about the spirit of the constitution and the country’s present situation, saying, “I know the prime minister is very busy but if she permits, I want to place some appeals to her about the country’s present situation and the constitution and its sprit.”

Kamal also said no one should arbitrarily blame law enforcers. “Politicians shouldn’t use police for their own gains.”

Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury and lawyer Subrata Chowdhury of the platform, among others, addressed the programme.