AL leaders strongly condemned remarks of jamaat leaders comparing Nizami with Prophet Hazrat Mohammad (SM)

March 21,2010

Leaders of the Awami League yesterday demanded immediate arrest of Jamaat leaders who, the AL leader said, compared their party chief Nizami with the Prophet Hazrat Mohammad (SM) and imposition of a ban on the religion-based politics of Jamaat-e-Islami and its students front Islamic Chhatra Shibir. Speaking at a public meeting in the city, Awami League presidium member and agriculture minister Begum Matia Chowdhury said that the war criminals and killers of 1971 like Nizami and his accomplices could not escape the long hands of the law as the kingpin of the militant outfit JMB Siddiqur Rahman alias 'Bangla Bhai' and the self-confessed assassins of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman could not escape the gallows. Dhaka City Awami League organised the public rally protesting the audacious remarks of Jamaat leaders who compared Prophet Hazrat Mohammad (SM) with their party chief Nizami. The demonstrators also marched on the city streets after the rally at Bangabandhu Avenue and torched two effigies of Nizami and Mujahid near Noor Hossain Square at Zero Point. Matia Chowdhury alleged that the followers of Jamaat-e-Islami were the sycophants of British regime during the independence movement of the sub-continent from its subjugation and then it opposed the country's independence struggle in 1971 as they were the sycophants of the Pakistani military rulers. They (Jamaat) don't have faith in Islam and used to mislead the people in the name of religion. They neither believe in the Prophet nor have faith in the holy book Quran as they kill people and rape women in the name of religion and now they are comparing the Prophet with their party chief to mislead the people in their bid to create an anarchy at a time when the present government has taken all preparations to try the war criminals, she said. We are the followers of the Prophet and believe Him as the greatest and the last Prophet but the founder of Jamaat-e-Islami Moulana Abul Ala Moududi portrayed him as a common man in his book and they have been giving wrong interpretation of Islam and misleading the people, Matia said urging the people to build a strong resistance against them. Awami League organising secretary and LGRD state minister Jahangir Kabir Nanak said that the whole nation was now in favour of imposing a ban on the financial institutions and other organisations, which financed the Jamaat and some militant outfits to indulge in militancy in the country.

March 21,2010

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday underlined the need for establishing direct road and rail links with China connecting Myanmar for mutual benefit of the people in these countries. "Leaders of the Yunnan province of China could play an important role to this end," Sheikh Hasina said at a dinner hosted by Vice-Governor of the province Lijing in honour of her in the city. Describing Yunnan province as the door of South and South- East Asia for China, Sheikh Hasina said she is impressed by seeing the development achieved by China, especially the Yunnan province so far. In this context, she said Bangladesh will learn from Chinese experiences of how a country can achieve development rapidly. In the function, Ms. Lijing highlighted cultural and historic heritages of the province when the two leaders exchanged gifts from their respective countries. Referring to people of different cultural groups living in Yunnan harmoniously, Sheikh Hasina said that in Bangladesh, people belonging to different cultural identities and religious faiths are living harmoniously over the decades. The Prime Minister said as a trusted friend and development partner of Bangladesh her country always values the excellent bilateral relations that presently exist between the two countries. Expressing her satisfaction over formation of Business Forum consisting different South Asian countries and China, she said it will play an important role in expansion of trade and business among the countries in the region.