Government is Showing Utmost Patience: PM

She said Khaleda Zia is giving directives from her office to her party leaders across the country to continue the killing and petrol bomb attacks. Every miscreant behind the incidents of arson and petrol bomb attack belongs to BNP, Jamaat or their student and youth fronts.

"So it's a matter of time when the BNP leader will face trial for those killings side by side punishment in the ongoing corruption cases," Sheikh Hasina said while addressing a big rally at Suhrawardy Udyan here this afternoon.

Bangladesh Awami League organized the rally marking March 7 of 1971, commemorating the historic public address by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in which he called Bengali people for waging all out struggle against Pakistani rulers.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who presided over the rally as the president of Bangladesh Awami League, criticized the so-called intellectuals who are reluctant to hold Khaleda Zia responsible for the current political violence, saying, those who would try to protect the killers would be charged with aiding and abetting the killers and bomb attackers.

She said Bangladesh would certainly go ahead defying the bomb attacks and orchestrated conspiracy of BNP and anti-liberation forces and none would be able to deviate the nation from its cherished goal of development.

"We will not tolerate the continuation of the rampage. It's a matter of time. Begum Zia will not only face the corruption charges, she will have to face charges of killings for giving directives," the Prime Minister said.

Party's Advisory Council member Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed, Suranjit Sengupta, presidium member Matia Chowdhury, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Mohammad Nasim, president of Dhaka City unit MA Aziz, general secretary Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, joint secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif and Jahangir Kabir Nanak, addressed the rally, among others.

Publicity Secretary Dr Hasan Mahmud and Deputy Publicity Secretary Asim Kumar Ukil conducted the rally attended by a large number of Awami League and its front organizations from across the city in processions.

Sheikh Hasina said people of Bangladesh have lost seven years from their life without any development during the regime of BNP and caretaker government. They started dreaming of their prosperous future after Awami League assumed power in 2009.

"People have been living in peace since 2009. They voted Awami League to power again in 2014 with mandate to carry forward the unfinished development works. But Khaleda Zia cannot accept the progress of the nation and this led her to choose a destructive path," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said it was the political decision of BNP to boycott the election. But they also tried in vain to foil the election by unleashing terrorism. It was their wrong decision.

"So why the people of the country have to pay for their wrong decision and offence," Sheikh Hasina said adding, people cannot accept the ploy of Begum Zia to play ducks and drakes with the lives of innocent people.

Sheikh Hasina said people know those persons who are hurling petrol bombs. Many of BNP-Jammat workers were blown off while manufacturing those deadly bombs. But a section of intellectuals never see this, she said urging party workers to identify those elements and forge strong resistance against the militants and terrorists in all areas along with the common people.

She accused Begum Zia of pursuing politics of bluff, cheating and falsehood. "She is constantly hatching conspiracy against democracy to capture power through back door. They also had put gun on me after grisly grenade attack on me on August 21, 2004 saying that I carried the grenades in my purse. BNP's repeated falsehood tarnished country's image abroad."

"Their false remarks claiming Begum Zia's telephone conversation with president of BJP of India Amit Shah and release of a statement by six US congressmen put shame on country's image. Their conspiracy was also unearthed when US Federal Bureau of investigation (FBI) sentenced son of a BNP leader for hatching conspiracy to kidnap Sajeeb Wajed Joy," she added.

The Prime Minister questioned the logic of Begum Khaleda Zia's constant stay in her political office instead of her home saying, "she devoted herself to what kind of revolution from that office except asking her party activists to kill innocent people.

Ruling out the allegation of Khaleda Zia of her insecurity in appearing in the court for hearing of two corruption charges, the prime minister said Begum Zia herself created the plea by enforcing hartal and blockade. In the name of movement and insecurity Khaleda Zia is dodging the court, she said.

Khaleda Zia appeared in court for only seven days out of 67 days of the trial of the cases. And on the last day she came to the court with her party workers brandishing sticks, firearms and other lethal weapons and swooped on a parliament member beating him mercilessly.

Sheikh Hasina said Awami League did not lodge the corruption case against Khaleda Zia, it was the last caretaker government who filed the case on charge of misappropriating the fund of orphans. "If Khaleda Zia is confident that she didn't eat up the money of orphans, what is her fear to face the trial," Sheikh Hasina asked.

About the historic speech of Bangabandhu on March 7, 1971 on this ground, the Prime Minister said the historic address was ranked one of the best speeches that inspired people for independence and self-determination.

After the brutal killing of Bangabandhu the speech remained banned for 21 years. Military rulers did not allow its playing for fear of people's awakening, to consolidate their politics of killing, coup and capture of power. But none can suppress the history, she said adding the speech remains a source of inspiration for the people across the globe.

Photo: Saiful Islam Kallol