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Download PDF Law enforcers have intensified the restriction on visitors to the Awami League president, Sheikh Hasina, at her Sudha Sadan residence from Tuesday afternoon.
Security measures around her house have been stepped up and no AL leader has been allowed to visit her from around 2:30pm. The law enforcers on duty, however, allowed her relatives, personal staff and physicians to enter Sudha Sadan in Dhanmondi.
AL presidium member Matia Chowdhury, central leaders Faruk Khan and advocate Abdul Hamid, and women affairs secretary Dr Dipu Moni were stopped at the entrance to Sudha Sadan.
The police later let Faruk Khan, a relative of the former prime minister, and Dipu Moni, also personal physician of Hasina, to enter the house.
When barred from visiting the party chief, Matia Chowdhury asked the authorities whether Hasina was detained or not.
But the police told her that the restriction was imposed on all visitors, excepting relatives, at the instruction of ‘higher authorities’.
They, however, failed to produce any document relating the instruction, Matia said.
‘It is unfortunate that the government is trying to keep the party chief isolated from Awami League activists as well as people in general,’ the AL leader added.
After visiting Hasina at about 10:30pm, Faruk said the AL chief felt harassed at the fresh restrictions which she termed unconstitutional, undemocratic, and inhuman.
Faruk hoped that the government would withdraw the restriction by today and allow AL leaders to discuss party reforms with their president.
He also warned that if the restriction was not withdrawn, Awami League would take legal action.
Asked whether Hasina was confined to her residence, he said, ‘Yes, to us it seems she is confined to her home.’
Earlier in the day, to the query of reporters whether the national taskforce assigned to investigate corruption and serious crimes would also investigate the cases filed against Hasina, communications adviser MA Matin replied in the negative.
‘It is not a matter of the taskforce which is investigating corruption cases,’ he said.
Asked whether the government was maintaining a
double standard by barring Hasina from going abroad while allowing Jamaat-e-Islami leader Ali Ahsan Mujahid facing the same charge to leave the
country for Turkey last week, Matin said, ‘No, everyone is equal to law.’
Hasina, accused in two extortion cases, had to postpone a personal trip to the United States scheduled for last Friday as a court asked the immigration department not to let her leave the country for the sake of investigation of the cases.
Earlier, on June 14, she had also been barred from going to Chittagong to visit the areas affected by the June 11 landslides.
June 21st, 2007 at 5:39 am
Unconstitutional, Undemocratic, Inhuman Act of this CT gov Fakhruddin’s implementation on Restriction to both former prime ministers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina is unacceptable, intolerable. This movement of CT gov proves direct violation of human rights and abuse the constitutional rights of the citizens, unless proven guilty of any crimes. Since this CT gov has took power, got most of the country’s top businessman and political leaders under extortion cases but yet failed to proved guilty with sufficient evidence. The climate of party reforms cannot exercise until indoor politics ban is lifted by the CT gov but Deny’s to lift the ban. I sometime wonder how this is possible within any political party leaders and their counter parts without any formal meetings or discussion can proceed while the indoor politics ban is existed.