Rizvi calls on India to return Ilias Ali

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi today (23 December) called on India to return M Ilias Ali, former organising secretary of BNP's central executive committee and former president of Sylhet district unit of the party who has been missing for 12 years.

"We are getting information from the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance that India was an accomplice in many disappearances in Bangladesh. Today, many people are leaving India. An investigation should be conducted into the matter. Were they taken to India? Then surely Ilias Ali, Chowdhury Alam, Saiful Islam Hiru, Zakir, Suman are still there," he said while addressing a doa mahfil.

Jatiyatabadi Muktijoddha Dal organised the programme on the ground floor of BNP's Nayapaltan central office in Dhaka to pray for the speedy recovery of the ailing former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.

Rizvi also said people may begin to question the difference between Sheikh Hasina and the present administration if the current government takes too much time to arrange the national election.

"Some advisers are suggesting there is no need to rush for a fair election… Sheikh Hasina has already extended it for 15 years. If you add a few more years to that, people will start wondering what the difference is," he added.

The BNP leader also said people have high expectations from this interim government. "We believe that whatever they do, it will certainly not be a repeat of Sheikh Hasina's fascism."

He said some people claim that the BNP has become too busy to return to power. "We would like to say that a free and fair election should be held. If a credible election is held, it is hard to say who will come to power. This is not an issue for the BNP alone."

The BNP leader observed that public trust in the interim government led by Dr Muhammad Yunus would increase if it takes steps to hold the national election as soon as possible.

He said the BNP has been fighting for the past 15 years to restore the people's ownership of the country and their right to elect a government.

Under the Awami League regime, Rizvi said, people were unable to elect their representatives, as Sheikh Hasina determined who would become an MP, upazila chairman, or Union Parishad chairman.

He also said Sheikh Hasina created a terrible situation during her rule to hang onto power by repressing and suppressing her opponents. "We are now free from that atmosphere of fear and panic, and we can move freely."