Published on 07:03 PM, July 11, 2016

Muhith stresses need to fortify parental bond

Finance Minister AMA Muhith applauded the sacrifice of Faraaz Ayaaz Hossain who was brutally killed in a militant attack at Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan while trying to protect his friends from the militants. Star file photo

Finance Minister AMA Muhith today underscored the need to strengthen the bond between parents and children in view of the recent attacks held in Bangladesh.

Muhith said it appeared to him that the parent-children relationship has weakened in the society. “It needs to be strengthened. It is unfortunate what these militants have revealed.”

Identity analysis into the militants who attacked a restaurant in Dhaka’s diplomatic zone and Sholakia Eidgah revealed that they had distant relationship with their family.

Many of them were from well-off background and were missing from home for months.

The finance minister was referring to these militant attacks today while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat. He also pulled reference to the bravery of Faraz Hossain during July 1 attack.

MUHITH LAUDS FARAAZ’S ROLE

“That wonderful boy could have saved his life. But he chose to remain behind for his friends. He had every opportunity to flee from the place,” Muhith said.

“Unfortunately, all of the bad people involved in the restaurant attack had middle class background where there should not be any question of indigence or complaint,” he said.

“Bad people can come from any layer of the society.”

Faraaz, a student at Emory University in Atlanta in US, was the grandson of Latifur Rahman, chairman of Transcom Group, and Shahnaz Rahman, chairman of Reliance Insurance Ltd. He was the son of Simeen Hossain, managing director of Eskayef Bangladesh Ltd. and Muhammad Waquer Bin Hossain, a businessman.

The 20-year-old went to the restaurant with two of his high-school friends, Abinta Kabir, a US citizen of Bangladeshi origin and also a student of Emory University as him, and Tarishi Jain, an Indian national and a student of the University of California, Berkeley.

When the captors came to know about his friends' citizenship they refused to release them. They however allowed Faraaz to go.

He had the opportunity to leave his friends behind and return to safety like many would have done in times of danger, but he declined to depart alone. Later, they all were found among the 20 people who were killed by the militants.