Staff Reporter:
BNP on Thursday strongly condemned the remarks made by National Security Adviser Dr Khalilur Rahman involving its Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman and demanded his immediate removal from office.
“The people of the country are shocked, surprised, worried and angry at the statement he (Khalilur) made about Tarique Rahman,” said BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.
Speaking at a press briefing at the BNP’s Nayapaltan central office, he also said the security adviser’s comments appear to echo the manner in which Hasina, the icon of fascism, used to defame the Zia family, aiming to create an illusion of so-called development by effectively burying democracy.
“Our statement is clear that there is no scope for experimentation with the state. Dr Khalil must be immediately removed from the post of National Security Adviser and complete information about his status at home and abroad must be disclosed to the people of the country,” Rizvi said.
Instead of addressing the questions raised about his status, the BNP leader said Khalilur sought to divert public attention by resorting to propaganda against Tarique Rahman, akin to fugitive dictator Hasina. “The people of this country will not accept such nefarious efforts.”
Describing Dr Khalilur as a controversial figure who appears to serve foreign interests, Rizvi said the public deserves answers to pressing questions: Where was he during a decade and a half of fascism? What was his status? In which country did he reside? What was his position abroad? What role did he play against fascism?
He also asserted that Dr Khalil’s statement regarding Tarique Rahman is detrimental to the permanent security of democracy.
“It seems there is an attempt to exact revenge by tarnishing the image of Tarique Rahman, whose public standing shines even brighter,” Rizvi said.
Earlier on Wednesday, speaking at a press briefing at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, Dr Khalilur Rahman had said, “If I’m being labelled a foreign citizen simply for residing in the US, then by the same logic, BNP Acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman – who has lived in the UK for years – could be similarly labelled.”
“If you throw a stone at me, it might end up hitting someone else,” he said, urging those who raised questions about his citizenship to make comments judiciously.
