The BNP-led 18-party alliance on Tuesday termed contrary to human rights the government’s move to drop the names of convicted war criminals from the voter list, and urged it to refrain from taking any final decision in this regard until the pending appeals are disposed of.
“We’ve come to know that a decision has been taken to cancel the voting rights of those convicted for crimes against humanity. It’s totally contrary to human rights and the rule of law,” said BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
Talking to reporters after a meeting of 18-party secretaries general at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office, he further said, “As the appeals are pending with the Supreme Court, we demand the government refrain from taking such a decision before disposing of the appeals in this regard.”
The Cabinet on Monday approved the draft of the ‘Voter List (2nd amendment) Bill, 2013’ with a provision for not including in and dropping from the voter list the names of those convicted under the Bangladesh Collaborators Special Tribunal Order, 1972 and International Crimes (Tribunals) Act 1973.
Fakhrul said the 18-party condemned the government’s decision taken on the issue before the Supreme Court disposes of the appeals filed by the convicts against the verdicts of the International Crimes Tribunals.
Meanwhile, the ICTs has so far convicted former ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, a key component of the 18-party alliance, Ghulam Azam, its nayeb-e-ameer Delwar Hossain Sayedee, secretary general Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, assistant secretaries general Abdul Quader Mollah, M Kamaruzzaman and ex-Jamaat leader Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (tried in absentia).
The cases of all but Azad’s are pending before the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court following the appeals.
Two BNP leaders –Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury and Abdul Alim— are also facing trial on charges of crimes against humanity committed during the country’s 1971 Liberation War.
Source: UNB Connect
