All involved in violent acts must be brought to book: Arafat

Everyone involved in violent activities cashing the quota reform movement must be brought to book following a thorough judicial probe, State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat said today (24 July).

"We have formed a judicial committee which will investigate thoroughly each and every single thing regardless of who is involved. We are committed to bringing everyone to book, whoever committed such kind of acts," he told reporters of foreign media working in Bangladesh after visiting the destruction site at the state-owned BTV headquarters in Dhaka this afternoon.

Highlighting the government's efforts to find a peaceful solution to the quota reform movement, the state minister said, "We were going through a peaceful solution. We repeatedly appealed that whatever the students are demanding on the streets, we are also fighting for the same cause in the court."

The government earlier urged the agitating students to be patient and not to be hopeless, Arafat said, adding, "In fact, from 7 July when the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court issued a status-quo on the subject matter, there was no quota in the country. 

"So, when there was no quota, [students'] demands were met. But still these kinds of chaos were created as we saw loss of so many lives and so many people got wounded. It was so unfortunate," he said.

Pointing that the government never wanted any casualty, the state minister said, "We sent out police force... but they were not allowed to open fire, because we didn't want any kind of casualties -- injuries or deaths."

Referring to destruction carried out by the miscreants at BTV headquarters, he said, "When I went inside, it looked like to me a war zone. You can see the magnitude of attacks that took place here and the way they invaded inside this building and started burning."

Arafat categorically said, "We are shocked over the unfortunate and unwanted casualties and we condemn this. We express our deep condolences to the family members who lost their near and dear ones." 

About a question raised by BNP on interruption of internet service and the number of casualties, he said, "We clearly stated that the data centre was severely damaged, they [miscreants] burnt it down. They burnt down the fiber optic cable in some of the places."

Noting the government is trying best to resume the internet service in full swing as soon as possible, the state minister said, "In fact, in absence of internet, we became the victims of it."

He added: "I, myself, from the information ministry could not communicate with the rest of the world and because of that some people managed to hold a disinformation campaign against us."

About the number of casualty, Arafat said, the government does not want to take into cognizance whatever BNP said about the number of casualties as a judicial committee has been formed to conduct a thorough investigation into each and every incident.

Replying to another question on the government's attribution of the destruction to a third party other than students, he referred to the kind of havoc took place in BTV and said, "You are standing right here on the site of destruction... what does it tell you? Do you think the students have done it?

"That's why the government is sensing an invasion of a third party, which got into the student movement and started attacking the government establishments," Arafat said.