‘War criminal descendants, party’ in polls with BNP ticket

‘War criminal descendants, party’ in polls with BNP ticket
‘War criminal descendants, party’ in polls with BNP ticket

The candidature of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami leaders with opposition BNP’s ticket has drawn flak from various quarters as Jamaat is accused of war crimes during the liberation war of 1971. Critics point out that at least two family members of convicted war criminals are contesting either with the BNP ticket or as independent contestants in the 11th parliamentary elections to be held on 30 December.
A total of 21 Jamaat leaders are contesting with BNP’s electoral symbol ‘sheaf of paddy’ and four others as independent candidates as the election commission declared Jamaat’s registration illegal in October.
Convicted war criminal and Jamaat leader Delwar Hossain Saydee’s son Shamim Saydee is contesting from Pirojpur-1 constituency with a BNP ticket and former Jamaat ameer (chief) and convicted war criminal Matiur Rahman Nizami’s son Najibur Rahman is contesting from Pabna-1 as an independent candidate.
BNP also gave initial nomination to fugitive war criminal convict Abdul Momen Talukder’s wife Masuda Momen in Bogura-3 seat. Momen’s brother Abdul Mohit Talukder finally got the party ticket but his candidature was declared illegal by the High Court later. The court then directed to give Masuda Momen the BNP ticket.
BNP sources said they gave nomination to Jamaat leaders considering the party’s vote bank. But many BNP leaders are not quite comfortable with Jamaat leaders’ candidature.
BNP standing committee member Mahbubur Rahman said, “It’s unfortunate. BNP should not have given nomination to Jamaat leaders. Why should we keep ties with them as they are a war criminal party,”
Opposition alliance Jatiya Oikya Front, which includes BNP, made pledges to continue the trial of war criminals but BNP opted to keep mum on the issue.
Meanwhile, a source related with the government has published a list of 8 BNP candidates who, they said, are accused in war crimes. Several newspapers and online news portals published reports regarding the list. The accused are Abdul Hakim (Thakurgaon-2), Gazi Nazrul Islam (Satkhira-4), ANM Shamsul Islam (Chattogram-15), Mia Golam Parwar (Khulna-5), Shamim Bin Saydee (Pirojpur-1), AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad (Cox’s Bazar), Nazibur Rahman(Pabna-1) and Masuda Momen (Bogura-3). Among them six are Jamaat leaders.
However, several senior officials of the International Crimes Tribunal, which is investigating the allegations of war crimes, said there are no war crime allegations against these 8 candidates.
Prothom Alo investigations reveal that those eight leaders were aged 10 to 12 years during the liberation war of 1971. Saydee’s son Shamim was born on 1 January 1972 (after the liberation war) according to his income tax returns submitted to the election commission.
Four of them-- Shamsul Islam, Gazi Nazrul Islam, Hamidur Rahman Azad and Abdul Hakim-- are still in jail. Former member of parliament Golam Parwar is accused of repressing minority community after 2001 election.
Dhaka University law department’s professor Asif Nazrul maintains that committing war crimes and opposing the liberation war are not the same.
“No alleged war criminals are contesting from Jatiya Oikya Front. It’s a moral question but there is no legal problem if someone from an anti-liberation war party contests in the election,” he said.
Asif said there are also allegations that the ruling Awami League-led alliance gave nominations to person who fought for Pakistan during the liberation war and opposed the liberation war.
“Some top leaders of the ruling party have marital relations with the family who were anti-liberation forces. Both Awami League and BNP have hobnobbed with the anti-liberation forces in different times in the past,” Asif added.
BNP also gave the party nomination to former state minister for home affairs Lutfuzzaman Babar’s wife Tahmina Zaman in Netrokona-4 constituency. Babar was given a death sentence in the case regarding the 21 August grenade attack on Awami League’s rally . Another convict in the same case Abdus Salam Pintu’s brother Sultan Salahuddin Tuku got BNP nomination from Tangail-2 seat.
Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee (Committee for Resisting Killers and Collaborators of Bangladesh Liberation War) president Shahriar Kabir said BNP has taken the liability of the war crimes by giving them a chance to contest the polls with the sheaf of paddy.