Bangladesh News

Release of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia is being delayed as she and the authorities have yet to reach a consensus on the conditions, party sources said.

In response to the strings attached to her release, the former prime minister has come up with counter-conditions, they added.

She has demanded that her elder son Tarique Rahman and the other detained party leaders who are not convicted yet must be freed before her release.

BNP insiders said the authorities have laid down a number of conditions for her release. They want her to go to a particular country for treatment and refrain from politics for a certain period of time (minimum five years).

She has also been requested to pass the chairperson’s responsibility to someone else before going abroad after release. But as of now, Khaleda has not agreed to leave the country, they added.

Meanwhile, sources close to the administration said there are strong reservations in the government about releasing Tarique as it might give a wrong signal to the people about its sincerity in the anti-graft drive.

Earlier, the advisers have denied setting any condition for Khaleda’s release.

Talking to reporters after a cabinet meeting at the Sylhet circuit house Monday, Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed spoke of his government’s intention of freeing her for treatment.

“The process is on. Everything is on track and it [release] is possible,” he observed, adding that she can be released by striking a balance between the legal aspects and humanitarian grounds.

Meanwhile, a BNP leader seeking anonymity told The Daily Star that all obstacles to her release might be cleared soon. However, he added, the situation might become even more complicated if the negotiations continue to drag on.

The rank and file of the party hope that the ongoing negotiations with the authorities would eventually translate into the release of their chairperson and her son.

Khaleda’s lawyers expect that like Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami, the mother and son would be let out on bail unconditionally.

Nizami, also former minister, was set free on July 15 after obtaining a two-month ad interim bail from the High Court (HC).

One of the BNP chief’s counsels however said the Jamaat chief managed to come out of prison because the government delayed filing an appeal against the HC order.

“The government can follow the same in the case of Khaleda Zia if it really is that sincere,” he added.