Politics won't be freed from stigma if BNP exists: Hasan

Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud today said politics won't be freed from stigma and hatred as long as BNP exists in politics since the party believes in the politics of killings.

"The August 21 grenade attacks were carried out with the patronisation of Tarique Zia and with the knowledge of Khaleda Zia while Ziaur Rahman carried out the 15 August brutal killings. Conflict of politics will never go away as long as BNP exists in the field of politics," said Hasan, also the joint general secretary of the ruling Awami League.

The minister said this to reporters replying to a query at the Secretariat marking the 19th anniversary of the heinous grenade attacks on the party's anti-terrorism rally on 21 August 2004 at Bangabandhu Avenue in the city.

Dr Hasan said the gruesome grenade attacks were carried out to kill Awami League President and incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. 

It is clear that the attacks were carried out by militants with the patronisation of the then BNP government, he added.

He said the grenades, found on the spot of the occurrence, are being used in the field of war by the military and the then government provided those grenades to the terrorists.

 He said an official of the army kept a grenade as evidence and, for this, he was suspended from the force.

"Even tear gas shells were hurled when the AL activists came to rescue the injured people... they washed the place of occurrence to destroy the evidence," he continued.

Dr Hasan said the then opposition leader in parliament and incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was injured in the attacks while 22 Awami leaders and activists were killed. AL President Sheikh Hasina was saved on that day for the grace of the Almighty, he added.

The global community had expressed their condemnation, he said, adding that the then BNP government didn't allow bringing a condolence motion or discussion in parliament rather they claimed that Sheikh Hasina had taken the grenades to the spot in her hand bag.

Replying to another query on activities over some human rights organisations, the information minister said there are some organisations at home and abroad who take it as a business.