BNP replies to Star report on Tarique

The BNP has sent a statement on an analytical report carried by The Daily Star on Tarique Rahman, acting chairperson of the party, published under the headline “Crown to Crime" on October 11.

Following is the full text (unedited) of the statement, undersigned by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, sent on Friday:

"Our attention has been drawn to a commentary entitled Crown to Crime, written by your staffers Inam Ahmed and Shakhawat Liton, and carried by your daily on 11 October 2018.

We believe, any newspaper has the right to analyse any event it feels relevant but when the analysis becomes highly biased and instrument of muck raking it hurts people concerned. That is why we are constrained to question the contents of the analysis.

The writers commented that our Acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman grew up in the shadow of his mother. What is wrong if a politician mother trains up her son to take politics as a responsibility? But it should be made clear that Tarique Rahman was involved with the election process for 7thJatiyaSangsad election in 1996 and newspaper reports of those days would bear testimony to this.

The writers observed that Tarique Rahman flung BNP into such an arrogant, repressive, corrupt and aggressive path that it ultimately upended the party in a few years' time. This statement is a sheer travesty of truth and we are sorry to say resonate the words used by the Awami League leaders. Despite ten years of terror and repression unleashed by the Awami League the BNP remains united as a rock and the single biggest political party of the country.

When the writers refer to the activities conducted from Hawa Bhaban it becomes clear that they were frustrated after the election victory of BNP in 2001. Is it wrong to have an election office to conduct a national election?

The analysis questions the attraction of a group of young leaders “educated and energetic” were attracted to Tarique Rahman. If a political party is to accept the prescription of two journalists about what sort of people should rally against a leader then, we are sorry to say, they are living in fool's paradise. Moreover, one cannot deny that fact that globally, whether you like it nor not, politics of inheritance or legacy is becoming a norm of the day. Dynastic inheritance has crept into almost all professional discipline. One may dislike it but stems from frustration.

We fail to understand how your writers could discover that senior leaders of BNP accepted Tarique's leadership grudgingly. This is sheer mockery of truth and it should be made clear that he emerged as the leader of the party through his untiring commitment to organize and strengthen the party at the grassroots.

Tarique Rahman visited the grave of Sheikh Mujib at Tungipara to pay respects. Our chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia also paid respects to Sheikh Mujib at his mausoleum at Tungipara. During speeches before the Jatiya Sangsad both Shaheed President Zia and Begum Khaleda Zia made references to the glorious leadership of Sheikh Mujib and other national leaders. It would have been fair if your writers could make a reference that Awami League had never any magnanimity to speak good things about Zia. Rather, either in the Jatiya Sangsad or outside they did not fail to utter indecent and slang words even for a moment against Shaheed President Zia, Begum Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman.

Your writers have extensively quoted to justify their opinion from US diplomatic reports originating from Dhaka and subsequently exposed by WikiLeaks. We prefer not to discuss the contents of these diplomatic cables as most of us, including you, know the sources of information of these cables. Bangladeshis know well how a cable was manufactured to usurp the power by the army-backed government in 2006.

We fail to understand how your writers blindly accept the allegations of corruption made by the army-backed caretaker government against the politicians. We should not forget that Tarique Rahman was also victim of malicious propaganda by the military backed caretaker government. It would have been proper if they could say how these allegations were made, copies of which were given to newspapers and compelled to print those. So there is no point to contest these concocted allegations and we do not want to hit anybody below the belt.

To justify the falsehood that Tarique Rahman had support for the militants your writers have quoted a former police officer, whose political loyalty is no secret now. It has become a fashion for a number of retired government functionaries of the country, in most cases, to criticize BNP, Begum Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman.

We would like to request you to print our statement in your paper with proper display and as early as possible."