BNP defends Khosru’s conversation

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday defended the leaked telephonic conversation of the party’s senior leader Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury.

“The telephonic conversation of Amir Khosru is not an offence,” Mirza Fakhrul told a media briefing at the party’s Naya Paltan central office after police raided the house of BNP standing committee member Amir Khosru last night.

A case was filed against BNP standing committee member Amir Khosru in the port city of Chattogram under the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act and Special Powers Act on Saturday night after a reported audio clip of telephonic conversation between Amir Khosru and an unknown boy over intensifying the ongoing student movement went viral on Facebook and YouTube.

“I didn’t listen to the conversation. But what I’ve heard he asked: ‘Why are you sitting idle? Take to the streets with students’. This is not an offence, because entire Bangladesh is with the students. People from across the country have taken to the streets. What is the offence?” said Fakhrul.

He, however, alleged that manufacturing such audio clip with fake voice is not uncommon.

Alleging that Khosru’s house was attacked, the BNP secretary general said such an attack is tantamount to an attack on democracy.

He also condemned Saturday’s attack on the US ambassador in Dhaka Marcia Bernicat and said, “Attack on the US ambassador means an attack on the United States.”