Archive for December 14th, 2007
Friday, December 14th, 2007 The killers of intellectuals during the Liberation War can be prosecuted on the basis of evidence preserved by the government. It only needs to take a move to resume the long halted process of trial of the intellectuals' murder cases.Sufficient number of documents and records on the cases have been preserved since 1972 at the home ministry, Criminal Investigation Department, Ramna police station, district and sessions judges' courts, chief metropolitan magistrates' courts and deputy commissioners' offices.Over the years, eminent jurists said all this evidence has now become ancient documents according to the evidence act, and is more effective than ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007Chief Adviser (CA) Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday said people heave a sigh of relief following the courageous role of the armed forces in building a corruption- and terrorism-free Bangladesh.He made the remark while addressing combined President Parade of army, navy and air force cadets at Bangladesh Military Academy Parade Ground at Bhatiari.The CA hoped that the newly commissioned officers of the army, navy and air force would play their role in protecting the sovereignty and security of the state as well as provide services to the nation.He urged them to uphold the image of Bangladesh as a liberal, democratic, promising and ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which probed an intellectual-murder case that dates back 10 years, made suggestions to the home ministry in 2001 that the government could file the case under International Crimes (Tribunals) Act 1973.No subsequent government, however, took the initiative to that end.Prof Farida Banu, sister of martyred intellectual Giasuddin, filed the case with Ramna Police Station on September 24, 1997 against two al-Badr cadres--Chowdhury Mainuddin and Ashrafuzzaman--for killing her brother on December 14 in 1971.The CID submitted the final report of the case in 2001 on grounds that it was filed under "wrong" section of law.Giasuddin was ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007Fire fighters yesterday succeeded in recovering the four bodies hanging from the ruins of Rangs Bhaban after efforts to bring down these bodies were suspended the day before on security grounds.Selim Newaz Bhuiyan, deputy director of Fire Service and Civil Defence, said the dead bodies -- which have been visible but inaccessible since the day of the cave-in -- were recovered during the course of the whole day.He said yesterday's rescue operation was carried out under extremely risky conditions and therefore, the speed of the operation was very slow.“The firefighters wore lifejackets and support belts. They had to cut ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007Endorsing the government plea, the Supreme Court yesterday overruled the High Court order that stayed the trial of detained former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in an extortion case at a makeshift court.Following a writ petition filed by Sheikh Hasina, the High Court on Sunday stayed the trial proceedings of the Tk 3-crore extortion case.The High Court had also issued a rule upon the government to explain why the November 26 gazette notification directing the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge to hold the trial of Hasina and two others at a makeshift court "should not be declared without lawful authority".Following the High ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007Brac official Noor Islam, who had been abducted while working in Afghanistan three months back and released on December 7, returned home yesterday and told of horrifying experience of living in dark and fear in a cave."Most of the times my eyes were tied with a piece of cloth tightly and I was kept in a place which seemed to be a cave," Noor told journalists upon his arrival at the Zia International Airport by a flight of Emirates at 10:40am.Noor's abductors released him on the night of December 7 and he returned home under an arrangement of the Brac ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007The government looks to produce an additional 7.5 lakh metric tons of rice by growing high-yield varieties over 10 lakh hectares of land to cover an estimated 14 lakh tons of shortfall caused by back-to-back natural disasters this year.Agriculture and Environment Adviser CS Karim spoke of the plan at a view-exchange meeting at The Daily Star office yesterday. He also said the government would work in unison with the NGOs to provide the affected farmers with agricultural implements, seeds and fertiliser.Karim observed that the country needs to invest in agricultural research to meet the challenge of securing increased crop yields ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007"I will not go back home without my father's body. If it is not possible to recover the whole body, I will return home at least with a finger and I will stay here until I get it," 25-year-old Alauddin was telling her mother over mobile phone yesterday.The son finally received the decomposed body of his father Ruhul Amin, 48, at Dhaka Medical College Morgue six days after the building at Bijoy Sarani collapsed."I had identified my father's body a day after the collapse from a previous injury mark on his left leg. But we could not take his body ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007A victim of human trafficking who was brought back home yesterday revealed how Bangladeshi jobseekers are lured by prospect of jobs in Europe and other developed countries and eventually deserted in Africa by international racketeers.Ramizuddin said he along with 14 other jobseekers was abandoned in a Moroccan jungle where a gang looted their money and other belongings.He also told journalists how they crossed 400 kilometres in Sahara desert without enough food and water to reach Bangladesh Embassy in Rabat in 26 days.On the way they faced sand storms several times and narrowly cheated death. Each time the storms piled huge ...
(read more) Friday, December 14th, 2007Bangladesh is unlikely to respond positively to an offer for the import of electricity from the Indian State of Tripura because of high tariff rate.India recently offered to sell electricity to Bangladesh from a 4,000MW power plant being built in Tripura.About the Indian offer, Power and Energy Adviser Tapan Chowdhury, speaking at the concluding session of the 16th Indo-Bangladesh Dialogue in the city, said the power tariff of the proposed plant is about 7 rupees (about Tk 11) per unit, which is very high from Bangladesh perspective.Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) organised the dialogue at Brac Inn with its ...
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