Dhaka, 21 August (HS). At least nine more complaints were filed against ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her aides, taking the number of cases against them to 31. Meanwhile, Bangladesh Nationalist Party General Secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday accused former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of conspiring to disrupt the revolution (protest against the government) in the country and asked India to extradite Hasina so that she could be prosecuted.
Fakhrul said in a statement in a newspaper, “Our demand from India is that Sheikh Hasina should be handed over to the Bangladesh government in a legal manner. The people of this country have decided to prosecute her. Let her be prosecuted.”
The cases registered against Hasina include 26 counts of murder, four of crimes against humanity and genocide, and one of kidnapping.
According to information, Supreme Court lawyer Gazi MH Tamim filed a complaint with the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh on behalf of Hefazat-e-Islam Joint General Secretary (Education and Law) Mufti Harun Izhar Chowdhury.
The complaint accused Hasina and 23 others of committing crimes against humanity and genocide during the Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chhatar in Motijheel on May 5, 2013.
“We have registered the complaint and an investigation has been started today,” Ataur Rahman, deputy director (administration) of the investigating agency, was quoted as saying by the paper.
This is the fourth complaint filed with the International Crimes Tribunal accusing the former prime minister. Sheikh Hasina resigned as prime minister on August 5 and fled the country to India after massive protests against her government over the controversial reservation system in government jobs.
Three of the four cases are related to the recent violence centred around the reservation agitation.
Besides, eight more cases were registered against the Awami League president across the country on Tuesday, accusing her in connection with the killings during the recent protests.
Haseena's son Sajeeb Wajed Joy, daughter Saima Wajed Putul and sister Sheikh Rehana have been made co-accused in the murder case for the first time.
The key accused in the Hefazat-e-Islam case include Awami League general secretary and former road transport and bridges minister Obaid-ul Quader, former minister Rashid Khan Menon, former Dhaka South City Corporation mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, former prime minister adviser Salman F Rahman, former prime minister's security adviser Tarique Ahmed Siddiqui, former inspector general of police AKM Shahid-ul Haque, 'ABnews24.com' editor Subhash Singh Roy and former army chief Aziz Ahmed.
Apart from these, some unknown Ministers, State Ministers and MPs, unknown persons from law enforcement agencies and the then policy makers of some electronic and print media have also been made accused in the case.
According to the complaint, on the instructions of the accused, the Hefazat activists were killed between May 5 and 6, 2013 in Dhaka and surrounding areas and various districts, including Chittagong, Narayanganj and Cumilla, the paper said.