Aug 21 Grenade Attack Case: Efforts on to arrest 15 fugitive convicts including Tarique

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told parliament yesterday that 15 convicts in the August 21 grenade attack case, including BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman, are absconding and efforts are on to arrest them.

“Out of the 49 convicts, 34 were arrested,” she said in response to a question from Farida Yasmin, Awami League MP from a reserved seat, during the question-answer session.

With Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, the session was held at the beginning of the day’s sitting.

“Among the convicts, 19 were sentenced to death and 19 to life imprisonment, and the rest got different jail terms,” said Hasina, also leader of the House, adding that Dhaka’s Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 passed the judgment on October 10, 2018.

She said Interpol issued red notices against convicts Maulana Tajuddin, Harris Chowdhury, and Ratul Ahmed Babu alias Ratul Babu, who are now abroad.

Two cases — one under the penal code and another under the Explosive Substances Act — were filed over the grenade attack on AL’s anti-terrorism rally on the capital’s Bangabandhu Avenue on August 21, 2004.

The PM said two charge sheets were filed against 52 people in the cases.

She said that out of the 52 charge-sheeted accused, three were executed in other cases before the verdict was declared.

Responding to another query of Laxmipur-1 MP Anwar Hossain Khan, the PM said, “Implementation of lightning strike prevention measures to prevent the loss of lives is underway in 15 districts, which are more prone to lightning strikes.”

She added that under the proposed project, 6,793 lightning rods/lightning protection canopies would be installed.

Answering a question from independent MP Abdullah Nahid Nigar, Hasina said that after the current government came to power, 56 cases were settled in the International Crimes Tribunal formed for the trial of crimes against humanity and war criminals and 153 accused got death penalties and other jail terms.

She said the present government is working relentlessly to establish the rule of law by ensuring fair trial to reduce suffering of the justice seekers.

In response to a question from Feni-1 MP Alauddin Ahmad Chowdhury, Hasina said Bangladesh Investment Development Authority has issued registration to 4,711 (4,130 local and 581 foreign) industrial projects between February 2019 and May this year.

The amount of proposed investment is Tk 28,30,537.85 million, which has created employment opportunities for 5,37,356 people.

From January 2022 to April this year, investment proposals of Tk 23,363 crore have been received from 43 countries. Between January 2022 and December last year, $6,484.35 million have been received as Foreign Direct Investment, the premier added.

Hasina said an initiative has been taken to set up a state-of-the-art National Emergency Operation Centre with the cooperation of China on one acre of land in the capital’s Tejgaon to deal with earthquakes and other calamities.

The implementation work will begin by formulating the project for this building that can withstand earthquakes measuring over 8 on the Richter scale, she said while responding to a query from AL MP Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil.