Claiming that the book ‘1971: Bhetore Baire’ (1971: Inside and Outside) a document against the ruling party’s long-drawn ‘false campaign’, Bangladesh Nationalist Party spokesman Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday said the revelation of facts in AK Khandker’s book has triggered fire to Awami League’s body.
“What Deputy Chief of the Liberation Forces AK Khandker has written in his book is true. People believe this. Now AL’s body has started burning as he (Khandker) unveiled the facts,” he said.
Fakhrul, the BNP acting secretary general, made the remarks while addressing a prayer at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office.
BNP organised the programme marking the 5th death anniversary of its ex-standing committee member and the country’s longest-serving finance minister M Saifur Rahman.
In his book ‘1971: Bhetore Baire’ published recently Liberation War hero AK Khandker claimed that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman concluded his historic March 7 speech in 1971 saying ‘Jay Pakistan’, triggering a fresh controversy.
Outraged by AK Khandker’s remarks, lawmakers in parliament on Thursday demanded that a case be filed against him on sedition charge for ‘distorting history and undermining Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’ in his just-published book.
Apparently reacting to the MPs’ scathing attacks on Khandker, Fakhrul said through the book, ‘1971: Bhetore Baire’, it has been proved Awami League’s long-time claim that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman proclaimed independence through the address was ‘false’.
“Some lawmakers on Thursday demanded trial on charge of treason of the person who was a valiant freedom fighter, fought in the field and made scarifies for the country’s independence. And above all, he was their MP and a minister just a few days back,” the BNP leader lamented.
He said those, including Tajuddin Ahmed, who had played a vital role in the Liberation War are neglected by Awami League as it does not want to recognise no one other than one person— Mujib.
Slamming the lawmakers for making offensive comments against Khandker, Fakhrul urged them to accept the truth what the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Bangladesh Armed Forces during the War of Liberation has unveiled. “Truth always comes out with its real face. AK Khandker only revealed the truth.”
He alleged that Awami League is unwilling to accept the historical facts about the country’s independence as its leaders had fled to India instead of being there in the battlefield.
“We those who were at the venue of the March 7 rally had heard Sheikh Mujibur Rahman concluding his speech saying ‘Jay Bangla’, ‘Jay Pakistan’. It was right at that time’s perspective. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is neither undermined nor blamed if anyone tells the truth,” the BNP spokesman claimed.
He also said Khandker rightly mentioned that there would not have been too many casualties on the night of March 25 and the day after in 1971 had Awami had the preparation for the Liberation War.
Recalling Saifur Rahman’s contributions to the Liberation War, the BNP acting secretary general said the finance minister was a freedom fighter as he had raised foreign fund and worked hard to mobilise foreign countries’ support for the Liberation War.
He regretted that Awami League does not recognise Saifur’s contributions and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina did not even issue any condolence message after his death in a road accident in 2009.
Source: Prothom Alo