The parliamentary sub-committee on the education ministry on Monday gave another six weeks to the former chief adviser of the caretaker government, Fakhruddin Ahmed, and the former army chief, General Moeen U Ahmed, to appear before it. They will now have to appear before the committee’s seventh meeting to be held on June 5.
Both were summoned by the committee to appear before it on Monday to explain their role during the violent incidents that took place on the Dhaka and Rajshahi University campuses in August 2007, but they expressed their inability to do so.
A letter would be sent to them to be present at the seventh meeting of the sub-committee on June 5, the chief of the sub-committee, Rashed Khan Menon, MP, told reporters.
The fifth sub-committee on the education ministry earlier decided at its fourth meeting on February 27 to summon Fakhruddin Ahmed and Moeen U Ahmed for appearing at its Monday meeting.
But they expressed their inability to be present before the committee through letters where they also briefly narrated their role.
“The statements they sent to the parliamentary body were meaningless. They cannot evade their responsibilities only describing the incidents of two days. They also tried to skirt the issue of atrocities on students and teachers,” Menon said.
A reign of terror was let loose at all educational institutes on their directives, Menon said, adding that students and teachers were inhumanly repressed in the name of interrogation.
“They asked the sub-committee to see the report of the one-man judicial probe committee of that time. But the committee had already seen that report.
It was an incomplete report. The main issues were bypassed in it,” Menon said.
In reply to a question regarding their inability to appear before the parliamentary body, Menon said: “We think they should appear before the public representatives, otherwise the next course of action would be decided later.”
Asked what action would be taken of they failed to appear before the committee, Manon said the parliamentary body does not have judicial powers.
“Their statements are needed to prepare the final report of the committee. If they do not come before the committee, the next course of action would be decided after discussions with the Speaker as per the rules of procedure” he added.
Replying to a query, Menon said it was not disgraceful to appear before a parliamentary committee. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former British Premier Tony Blair have appeared before such committees, he said, adding that however, if Gen Moeen was sick he cannot travel the distance to come here. The chief of Rajshahi RAB-5, the then DGFI chief Col Shamsul Alam Khan (presently Brigadier) would be sent letters to be present at the seventh meeting of the sub-committee, Menon said.
The sub-committee would hear the injured students’ statements at the next meeting on May 19.
An altercation between some army personnel and students at a DU playground during a football match sparked violence on the DU campus and later spread across the country in August 2007.
Four DU teachers and six teachers of Rajshahi University were arrested, while several hundreds of students faced the wrath of army personnel.
Fakhruddin Ahmed and Moeen U Ahmed, now staying in the USA, were earlier summoned to appear at the sub-committee’s Monday meeting as per the February 27 meeting’s decision. But both of them expressed their inability in writing to attend the meeting. “With regret, I would like to inform you I am now in the USA suffering from heart and kidney diseases along with other complications,” Gen Moeen said in a letter addressed to Menon.
“I am under treatment and it will not be possible for me to travel such a long distance at this moment,” the former general said in a letter whose contents have been accessed by chief crime correspondent Liton Haider.
“It would have been a pleasure for me to appear before the committee and apprise (you) about my knowledge of the incident,” he said, but added, “Having full respect for the parliamentary committee as well as my responsibility as a citizen I am attaching my statement.
“For further correspondence please contact me through my e-mail address,” the former army chief said.
Following the footsteps of the former army chief, the former chief adviser of the caretaker government, Fakhruddin Ahmed, declined to comply with the committee’s instruction to appear before it.
And like the General who installed him in power, Dr Fakhruddin also asked the committee to go through the judicial commission report on the violent incidents. Menon told The Independent that a relative of Dr Fakhruddin gave him a printed e-mailed letter on Saturday. In the letter, Fakhruddin Ahmed said: “Being informed of the incidents of violence between students of Dhaka University and members of the army on August 20, 2007, I convened a meeting on the next day (August 21) morning with all advisers and high officials.
“The meeting decided to withdraw the army camp from the university area as per demands of the students. Later, the government regretted the incident through a press note. But the students continued to protest even after it. As the incident turned violent, another meeting was held which decided to impose curfew as the only option left for the government, taking into consideration the entire situation for people’s security. Having realized the significance of the matter, I informed the people of the decision through an address to the nation. Simultaneously, I announced formation of an independent judicial probe into the incident.”
He said the report of the judicial probe committee was published in the form of a gazette. The purpose was to enable any one interested to go through it. “I request the parliamentary committee to go through the report.”
The former chief adviser did not mention anything regarding his inability to appear before the parliamentary committee.
Hundreds of Dhaka University students alleged at the time that they had been chased, beaten up or detained by the troops. Scores of others were also sued. At least two senior teachers were detained, assaulted and sued for “treason”. Law enforcers arrested many university teachers in Dhaka and Rajshahi on charges of instigating the violence against the army. A man was killed in Rajshahi and several hundred were injured there and in other cities as students fought pitched battles with the police in defiance of a state of emergency in force since January 2007.
The authorities ordered an indefinite curfew in Dhaka and five other cities in late August as troops assaulted hundreds of innocent people including students and journalists. The curfew was lifted a few days later but all major universities in the six cities remained closed for up to two months.
In the face of a strong movement, the government pardoned four university teachers and some students six days after they had been jailed for inciting student unrest and withdrew army camps from the university campus.
Courtesy of The Independent
