Sahara warns of action against those responsible

June 25, 2009

Admitting the intelligence failure that led to the BDR carnage at Pilkhana, Home Minister Sahara Khatun yesterday said the government is investigating whose negligence it was and warned that steps would be taken against those responsible for the failure.

She said not only the BDR carnage, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other four national leaders were also killed due to the failure of the intelligence agencies.

“Even the August 21 incident in front of Awami League central office at Bangabandhu Avenue took place because of intelligence failure,” Sahara told reporters after a meeting of the cabinet committee on law and order at the home ministry.

Asked if the officials of the intelligence agencies gave any explanation in the meeting for their failure, Sahara said they didn’t ask for any explanation from the intelligence agencies for their failure. She said they would check who played what role.

The committee discussed progress of the investigation into the February 25-26 BDR mutiny. Sahara said a total of 41 cases have so far been filed across the country in connection with the carnage at BDR headquarters and other places.

At the meeting, BDR officials once again proposed to hold the trial of BDR mutiny culprits under the Army Act to speed up the trial process.

A proposal has been submitted to the home ministry in this regard and later sent to the law ministry for opinions, it said.

The law minister has, however, been saying that the decision under which law the mutineers to be tried would be taken after completion of the investigation.

Briefing newsmen about the outcome of the meeting, Sahara said the committee widely discussed the country’s overall law and order situation and has found an improvement in this regard. “But we are not satisfied with the situation, it should further be improved,” she added.

She said the law enforcement agencies cannot perform their duties for lack of adequate manpower and logistic support. She asked the ministries concerned to take necessary steps to resolve the manpower and transport problems of the agencies.

LGRD Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, Law Minister Shafique Ahmed, Information Minister Abul Kalam Azad, State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Tajul Islam, Cabinet Secretary M Abdul Aziz, Home Secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikdar, IGP Nur Mohammad, Rab DG Khandakar Mahmud Hasan, BDR DG Major General Mainul Islam, and high officials from different intelligence agencies, Armed Forces Division and coast guards were present at the meeting.

Sahara warns of action against those responsible

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