The defeated goons would not be established again in Bangladesh : PM

"My politics is also guided with the same principle of ridding the country of poverty and building a developed nation, upholding the dignity of Bangladesh abroad as a victorious nation," she told a rally here yesterday afternoon.

Bangladesh Awami League Dhaka City Unit arranged the rally at Suhrawardy Udyan as part of the party's month-long programme to observe the 39th martyrdom anniversary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and National Mourning Day.

The Prime Minister said Bangabandhu was killed as he was uncompromising on the question of the interest of the Bengali people and wanted to change the lot of people and worked for their welfare. "The sacrifice of Bangabandhu and our struggle would be successful if we can build a poverty and hunger-free Bangladesh," she said.

Senior Awami League leaders Tofail Ahmed, Suranjit Sengupta, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Matia Chowdhury, Advocate Sahara Khatun, Advocate Qamrul Islam, vice chancellor of Dhaka University AAMS Arefin Siddiqui and general secretary of Dhaka City unit of Awami League Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya also addressed the meeting, among others, while acting president of the Unit MA Aziz was in the chair.

The Prime Minister said people of Bangladesh would never allow re-
emergence of the anti-liberation force and killers would get no room on the soil of the country. "We have started the trial of the killers and executed the verdicts. The verdict of remaining culprits would be executed, inshallah," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said Bangabandhu had taken initiatives to bring the war
criminals to book. But Ziaur Rahman rehabilitated them in the country and brought back many of them from Pakistan who abjured their nationality after independence.

"They still suffer from pains, they still like slavery of Pakistan, they do not want to live with the dignity that Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman gave them making the country free from subjugation. BNP leader Khaleda Zia is a sycophant of the collaborators," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said people of the country should keep in mind that Begum Zia feels pain when people of the country live in peace and Bangladesh earns any honour from abroad. But, none would be able to hold back the Bengali nation, she said.

Sheikh Hasian said the killers of Bangabandhu wanted to bring change in the state power to destroy all achievements of independence as well as documents and distort the history and wipe out the spirit of the war of liberation.

After the assassination of Bangabandhu and four national leaders, the prime minister said, as many as 19 coups took place in the army during the regime of Ziaur Rahman. After every coup army officers who fought for the country's independence were brutally killed. About 2,500 army officers and soldiers were killed along with 665 officers of Bangladesh Air Force, she said.

Ziaur Rahman slowly rid the army of freedom fighters and installed the
anti-liberation force in power. The persons who opposed Bangladesh's
independence in the UN and formed Razakar and Al-Badr were brought to power.

Sheikh Hasina said the killers of Bangabandhu included betrayer Mushtaque and his toady Ziaur Rahman. She said Bangabandhu promoted Zia to the position of Deputy Army Chief and brought him to Dhaka to protect his family.

But the killers of Bangabandhu made it clear in their interview with
foreign media including BBC that they proceeded for the August 15 putsch getting a green-signal from Khandakar Mushtaque and Ziaur Rahman.

The prime minister said Zia had a link with Pakistan occupation force even during the war of liberation and it was mentioned in the letter of Pak General Aslam Beg.

Sheikh Hasina said after August 15, 1975, Khandakar Mushtaque made Ziaur Rahman the chief of army staff. "Why would Mushtaque promote Zia to the top post of army without any connivance between them?" she asked.

Sheikh Hasina said Ziaur Rahman declared himself as the president of the country when he was the army chief. It was a violation of the army rules. Along with killing scores of military officers Ziaur Rahman killed thousands of political leaders and workers, she said.

Recalling the memories of the month of August 1975, Sheikh Hasina said only 15 days ahead she along with her youngest sister Sheikh Rehana went to Germany, where her husband was working. For a long time they could not come back home.

She said Ziaur Rahman kept Bangabandhu residence under lock and key after August 15, 1975. "After my return home we wanted to arrange a milad in that house. But Ziaur Rahman didn't allow us to enter this house," she said.

Ziaur Rahman awarded the killers of Bangabandhu with jobs in foreign
missions and rehabilitated them in country's politics. Ziaur Rahman even made the killers ambassador of Bangladesh to many countries, she said.

The prime minister said, BNP tried to foil the trial of the Bangabandhu murder case. BNP enforced hartal on the day of pronouncement of the verdict to bar the judges from going to court, she said. Ziaur Rahman made collaborators of Pakistan the prime minister and ministers of the country and his wife followed him while making the Rajakar and Al-badr chiefs ministers of her cabinet.

Criticizing Khaleda Zia for celebrating her birthday on August 15, Sheikh Hasina said a person without perverted mentality cannot make fun on the national mourning day. Through celebrating her birthday on August 15, Begum Zia remains with the killers and anti-liberation force and she doesn't believe in country's independence.

Sheikh Hasinsa said, she is not only the daughter of Bangabandhu, but also a soldier of the ideology of Bangabandhu. "As a soldier of Bangabandhu's ideology, I'm also a servant of the people of the country," she said urging people to remain careful about the conspiracy of the anti-liberation force against the country.

-BSS
Photo: Yeasin Kabir Joy