The government has approved 12 cases
relating to treason charges over the past three months to try BNP senior
vice chairman Tarique Rahman.
These cases were filed with a number of courts across the country and
general diaries were also registered with different police stations in
this connection.
But, the government of Bangladesh has not yet requested the United Kingdom to extradite Tarique Rahman, now staying in London, despite issuance of read notice by Interpol.
However, the state minister for home affairs, Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, told Prothom Alo on Wednesday that a decision was taken to request London to send back Tarique Rahman soon.
A letter in this regard will be sent within a day or two.
The state minister said, "We know where Tarique is and he has taken political refuge there. Three months ago we had asked Interpol to issue a red alert. They had some queries and that is why there was some delay. Now we will issue a letter to the British government if necessary."
The red notice issued on Tarique is in connection to the 21 August grenade attack.
Home ministry sources say, there are many more cases and files in this connection are being sent in from all over the country. These will be passed as treason charges.
The sources claim, in November and December of last year, as well as in January of this year, Tarique Rahman made several anti-state remarks and statements against the independence of the country.
From abroad he issued instructions to leaders and activists of the 20-party alliance to cut off the capital city Dhaka from the rest of the country. He was particularly vocal about this after 5 January when BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia declared the countrywide continuous blockade. He was said to have spread all sorts of false information against Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The cases and general diaries against him term these statements as instances of treason. The home ministry is now giving its approval for the cases.
However, an official of the ministry has said, the question remains as to how these trials will be conducted as the cases have been filed all over the country.
The state minister said in this regard, there will be one trial for each incident. But there are several incidents, particularly the 21 August grenade attack where Tarique Rahman is the main accused. The red alert principally is about this case.
Tarique Rahman had been arrested after a state of emergency was declared in 2007. He then went to the UK on medical treatment in 2008.
Prothom Alo's staff correspondent and London correspondent said an email had been sent to Interpol in France regarding the red notice on Tarique. The international police organisation replied that the red alert was not any arrest warrant. The organisation does not send any force to arrest the accused and does not pressurise any country for this arrest. Interpol simply provides information in this connection to the 190 member countries.
Mahbubur Rahman Bhuiyan, head of the national central bureau (NCB), the Bangladesh branch of Interpol, told Prothom Alo, "We sent this notice to Interpol three months ago at the request of CID, which is looking into the case."
In reply to Prothom Alo's mail, Interpol refused to provide any information about the matter. Interpol said it did not provide information regarding any individual other than to the authorities of the concerned country. It assists the member country's police to ascertain the identity and location of the concerned person. This facilitates one country's government to assist another country's government to arrest and extradite the accused.
There are no instances of the US extraditing any accused person following red alert notices from Interpol. Even if it wants to, the UK government cannot extradite anyone, not even if there is an extradition treaty. The accused person has the right to resort to legal assistance. The court's decision on extradition is final.
At a conference held on Wednesday at BNP's central office in Naya Paltan concerning Interpol's red alert, the party's international affairs secretary Asaduzzaman Ripon said, Interpol has merely published the information provided from Bangladesh. Earlier some ministers had said they would bring back Tarique through Interpol and try him. This red alert is just a result of that, just another drama of the government.
But, the government of Bangladesh has not yet requested the United Kingdom to extradite Tarique Rahman, now staying in London, despite issuance of read notice by Interpol.
However, the state minister for home affairs, Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, told Prothom Alo on Wednesday that a decision was taken to request London to send back Tarique Rahman soon.
A letter in this regard will be sent within a day or two.
The state minister said, "We know where Tarique is and he has taken political refuge there. Three months ago we had asked Interpol to issue a red alert. They had some queries and that is why there was some delay. Now we will issue a letter to the British government if necessary."
The red notice issued on Tarique is in connection to the 21 August grenade attack.
Home ministry sources say, there are many more cases and files in this connection are being sent in from all over the country. These will be passed as treason charges.
The sources claim, in November and December of last year, as well as in January of this year, Tarique Rahman made several anti-state remarks and statements against the independence of the country.
From abroad he issued instructions to leaders and activists of the 20-party alliance to cut off the capital city Dhaka from the rest of the country. He was particularly vocal about this after 5 January when BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia declared the countrywide continuous blockade. He was said to have spread all sorts of false information against Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The cases and general diaries against him term these statements as instances of treason. The home ministry is now giving its approval for the cases.
However, an official of the ministry has said, the question remains as to how these trials will be conducted as the cases have been filed all over the country.
The state minister said in this regard, there will be one trial for each incident. But there are several incidents, particularly the 21 August grenade attack where Tarique Rahman is the main accused. The red alert principally is about this case.
Tarique Rahman had been arrested after a state of emergency was declared in 2007. He then went to the UK on medical treatment in 2008.
Prothom Alo's staff correspondent and London correspondent said an email had been sent to Interpol in France regarding the red notice on Tarique. The international police organisation replied that the red alert was not any arrest warrant. The organisation does not send any force to arrest the accused and does not pressurise any country for this arrest. Interpol simply provides information in this connection to the 190 member countries.
Mahbubur Rahman Bhuiyan, head of the national central bureau (NCB), the Bangladesh branch of Interpol, told Prothom Alo, "We sent this notice to Interpol three months ago at the request of CID, which is looking into the case."
In reply to Prothom Alo's mail, Interpol refused to provide any information about the matter. Interpol said it did not provide information regarding any individual other than to the authorities of the concerned country. It assists the member country's police to ascertain the identity and location of the concerned person. This facilitates one country's government to assist another country's government to arrest and extradite the accused.
There are no instances of the US extraditing any accused person following red alert notices from Interpol. Even if it wants to, the UK government cannot extradite anyone, not even if there is an extradition treaty. The accused person has the right to resort to legal assistance. The court's decision on extradition is final.
At a conference held on Wednesday at BNP's central office in Naya Paltan concerning Interpol's red alert, the party's international affairs secretary Asaduzzaman Ripon said, Interpol has merely published the information provided from Bangladesh. Earlier some ministers had said they would bring back Tarique through Interpol and try him. This red alert is just a result of that, just another drama of the government.
