| Tarique okayed Huji plot of 21 August Grenade attack Posted: 22 Aug 2011 01:19 AM PDT 
Huji leaders met Tarique Rahman a few days before the August 21 grenade attack in 2004 and got the go-ahead to stage the blasts. Lutfozzaman Babar, then state minister for home, Harris Chowdhury, political secretary to then prime minister Khaleda Zia, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami, then NSI director general Brig Gen Abdur Rahim and DGFI director Brig Gen Rezzaqul Haider Chowdhury were present at that meeting, held at Hawa Bhaban in the capital's Banani. The attack was the outcome of collaboration between Huji, influential leaders of BNP and Jamaat, and some officials of the home ministry, police, Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), National Security Intelligence (NSI) and Prime Minister's Office (PMO). This is what investigators have found in further probe and described in the supplementary charge sheet in the August 21 murder case. The Daily Star has lately obtained a copy of the charge sheet submitted in July. The August 21 blasts at an Awami League rally on Bangabandhu Avenue killed 24 leaders and workers including Ivy Rahman, wife of now President Zillur Rahman, and injured 500 others including Sheikh Hasina, now prime minister. According to the charges, leaders of banned militant group Harkatul Jihad al Islami (Huji) had two meetings with Tarique, elder son of Khaleda and the then senior joint secretary general of BNP. Both were held at Hawa Bhaban, widely considered the alternative centre of power during the last BNP-Jamaat coalition rule. At the first meeting, in early 2004, Huji leaders sought support in executing their plans to assassinate Sheikh Hasina and other top AL leaders. BNP lawmaker Mofazzal Hossain Kaikobad had helped arrange the meeting. Tarique assured the Huji men of all-out support. At the second meeting, which took place in mid- August, he reiterated his assurance to Huji boss Mufti Hannan and his associates. For the second meeting, Huji leaders Mufti Hannan, Moulana Abu Taher, Moulana Sheikh Farid and Moulana Tajuddin went to Hawa Bhaban on a microbus of Al Markazul Islam, a non- government organisation. Moulana Abdur Rashid of Al Markazul was with them, but he was left waiting on the ground floor when they went upstairs to meet Tarique. On August 18, three days before the attack, the Huji leaders met Babar at the residence of former BNP deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu. Owner of Hanif transport Mohammad Hanif and BNP ward commissioner Ariful Islam Arif were present at the meeting. Babar and Pintu assured the militant leaders that Hanif and Arif would help them in every way and that "they would receive all administrative assistance." The Arges grenades used in the attack were smuggled in from Pakistan. Tajuddin, Salam Pintu's brother, had supplied the grenades, which were taken to Mufti Hannan's Badda office from Pintu's Dhanmondi residence on August 20. The first charge sheet in the August 21 case was placed in 2008 against 22 people including Salam Pintu and 21 Huji leaders and workers. The supplementary charge sheet was submitted on July 3, accusing 30 more people including Tarique, Babar, Harris and Mojaheed. It says some police officials deliberately did not take necessary security measures so that the perpetrators had no difficulty staging the blasts and fleeing the scene. The then Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner Ashraful Huda, who later went on to become the Inspector General of Police, went abroad on the day of the attack without ordering adequate security arrangements for the AL rally. On his return, he did not take any punitive steps against the law enforcers who were negligent in their duties on the rally venue. The then IGP Shahudul Haque purposely did not update himself with the security measures taken on the rally venue. He did not even visit the scene after the attack, though it was only around 500 yards from his office. He also did not issue any directives to identify or arrest the perpetrators. Tajuddin, supplier of the grenades, left the country for Pakistan on instructions from Babar. Khaleda Zia was aware of this, continues the charge sheet. Tajuddin was given a fake passport with the name "Badal". Saiful Islam Duke, Khaleda's nephew and also private secretary, Duke's brother-in-law and DGFI official Lt Col Saiful Islam Joarder, and another top DGFI official Major Gen (rtd) ATM Amin had helped him flee the country on October 10, 2006. Source: The daily Star, 22.08.2011 |
| Jacqueline In and Chitrangada Out from ‘Krissh 2 Posted: 22 Aug 2011 01:10 AM PDT 
 Her bold and hot avatar in 'Murder 2' has made Jacqueline Fernandez a hot property in the tinsel town and has made her way into the ambitious project 'Krissh 2' by Rakesh Roshan. The industry is abuzz with the news that both Hrithik and Rakesh Roshan met the beauty and the three had a lengthy discussion over the movie which probably lasted for nearly three hours. Earlier Chitrangada Singh was being considered for the female lead but as the film was delayed from October to December, she is said to have opted out of the project. Reports also say that Singh left the project because she felt that the film had nothing much to offer to the actress and the role was almost like a cameo. Whatever be the reason, one thing is for sure that Jacqueline has replaced Chitrangada in 'Krissh 2' though the final announcement is yet to be made. |
| Shilpa Shetty comfortable with her bold scenes in ‘The Desire’ Posted: 22 Aug 2011 01:08 AM PDT 
 It has been a long time that Shilpa Shetty has done a full length meaningful role on the silver screen and the leggy lass is all set to get this done with her role as an Oddisi dancer in her next film The Desire: A Journey of A Woman. The film also has some very intimate scenes with her co-star Xia Yu but Shilpa maintains that she absolutely had no qualms in doing these scenes as these sequences are an integral part of the film, and have been aesthetically shot. The film revolves around the story of a world famous Chinese painter is madly in love with Shilpa's character Gautami, but she does not really respond to him. "The film traces Gautami's journey through a number of years. The love story is beautiful and the passion between the two characters is almost like a painting. I would say that it's my character Gautami, who is bold, and not the scenes per say," explains Shilpa. |
| Rebels say Tripoli's fall 'imminent', urge Nato to help with Apache assault helicoptersRebels say Tripoli's fall 'imminent', urge Nato to help with Apache assault helicopters Posted: 21 Aug 2011 09:20 AM PDT 
DUBAI: Libyan rebels said victory in Tripoli was imminent on Sunday and urged NATO to join the final battle with Apache assault helicopters. "We will enter Tripoli in a few hours. Between now and tomorrow we expect it to fall in our hands," said rebel commander Abdelhakim Belhaj. And Aref Ali Nayad, the rebel National Transitional Council's envoy to the United Arab Emirates, told reporters in Dubai: "We expect victory tonight." The battle for Tripoli, which is the stronghold of Gaddafi's regime, has left "hundreds dead and thousands wounded," he said. Insurgents, Nayad added, have formally requested NATO deploy more assault Apache helicopters to assist them in combat. "The Apaches are very precise and we are in great need of their intervention. We made a formal request last night," he said. In Benghazi, rebels said an operation dubbed "Mermaid" was underway in the capital with the goal of isolating the veteran leader and forcing his surrender or departure. The regime in Tripoli retorted that "thousands" of professional and volunteer troops were ready to defend the capital against NATO-backed rebels. |
| 21 August Grenade Attack: A brutal Bloodshed for the nation Posted: 21 Aug 2011 03:41 AM PDT 
The attack undoubtedly aimed to kill Sheikh Hasina & to make vacuum in the leadership of Awami League AL chalked out a two- day program to pay homage to the martyrs of 21 August Grenade attack 21 August 2011 The nation is recalling today the seventh anniversary of the grenade attack with heavy hearts and a renewed call for holding trial of perpetrators of the carnage. The gruesome grenade attack was carried out at an anti-terrorism rally of Awami League (AL) on this day in 2004 during the BNP-Jamaat alliance government. With the grace of the almighty, the then opposition leader and incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other front ranking leaders of the AL escaped the carnage. AL leaders saved their party chief after forming a human shield. But, 24 people including the then Mahila AL president and wife of incumbent president of Bangladesh Zillur Rahman were killed and 500 others injured in the attack and many of them become crippled for life. The grenade attack on Awami League rally at Bangabandhu Avenue on 21 August 2004 was undoubtedly aimed at assassination of Sheikh Hasina. Before she could leave the place of occurrence there were at least nine grenade blasts and many rounds of shooting. A very determined and well- planned attack was launched and it was carried out in about a couple of minutes. Despite heavy, although less than normal, deployment of police personnel and strict security arrangements in the area, the criminals fled the spot safely. By the race of Allah Sheikh Hasina escaped this dastardly attack as a number of Awami League leaders and workers laid down their lives, some in attempting to save her and others as innocent victims of the barbarous arrack. We bemoan the loss of Ivy Rahman, Secretary of women's affairs of Awami League, and 23 other dead souls. Hundreds of leaders and workers are still fighting for life and many have been permanently maimed. Bloody 21 August still haunts many victims. The then BNP- Jamaat government did not take any legal actions against the culprits responsible for the attack. The militants backed by the then government and top leaders of BNP and Jamaat were behind the attacks. They also staged "George Mia drama" to save the real culprits. Awami League leaders, activists and supporters who were brutally killed by 21 august 2004 Grenade attack: Begum Ivy Rahman, Former Woman Affairs Secretary, Bangladesh Awami League; Moshtak Ahmed Sentu Assistant secretary, Bangladesh Awami League; Lance Corporal (retd.) Mahbubur Rashid, Personal Security staff; Rafiqul Islam (68) who was known as Ada Chacha ,Advisor, Dhaka City Awami League; Sufia Begum (40),Woman Awami League, Dhaka City Unit Leader; Hasina Momtaz Rina (45),President. Dhaka City Woman Awami League ward no. 15 ; Liton Munshi alias litu, President, Union Jubo League(AL youth front); Ratan Sikder(40), AL supporter & Businessman; Md. Hanif (50) Dhaka city Labour League Leader of ward no. 30; Mamun Mridha (21), Second year student of Govt. Poet Nazrul College, Dhaka & AL supporter; Belal Hossain, Asst. Organizing Secretary, Jubo League, 69 no. ward unit of Dhaka city; Aminul Islam alias Moazzem (25) ,Awami League activist; Abdul Kuddus patwari (40), Member, National Committee, Bangladesh Awami Shechchashebok League; Atik Sarker(21), Jubo League leader of 84 no. ward unit of Dhaka city; Nasiruddin Sarder (40),Activist of Labour League, Dhaka Chapter; Rezia Begum(45),Awami Shechchashebok League Leader; Abul Kashem (50) ;Zahed Ali(35); Momin Ali(35); Shamsuddin(55); Abul Kalam Azad(38) President, Jubo League, Balughat unit, Dhaka and Ishak Mia More than 500 AL leaders, activists, supporters and meeting listeners were injured during the barbaric grenade attack. Two cases -- one for murder and another under Explosive Act - - were filed in this regard. Around four years after the massacre, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) indicted 22 people including former deputy minister of the BNP Abdus Salam Pintu and the banned Harkatul Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI) chief Mufti Abdul Hannan in two separate chargesheets in the cases on July 11, 2008. After taking office, the AL launched fresh investigation on August 3, 2009 into the matter following a court order to find out the sources of grenades and their suppliers. On July 3 this year, 30 more people including senior vice- chairman of the BNP Tarique Rahman were indicted in the supplementary chargesheets in the cases after a fresh investigation. With the accused, the number of the chargesheeted accused in the cases now stands at 52. Of them, 19 accused in the August 21 grenade attack cases are now in foreign countries. Of them, Tarique Rahman is now at London, Harris Chowdhury at Asam in India, Shah Mofazzal Hossain Kaikobad, MP, in Bangkok, owner of Hanif Enterprise, Mohammad Hanif at Kolkata in India, Maj Gen (retd) ATM Amin in the United States, Lt Col (retd) Saiful Islam Joarder in Canada, Babu alias Ratul Babu in India, Anisul Morsalin and his brother Mohibul Muttakin at Tihar Jail in India, intelligence sources said. Militant operatives Shafikur Rahman, Mufti Abdul Hai, Maulana Abu Bakar, Iqbal, Khalilur Rahman, Jahangir Alam alias Badar, Maulana Liton alias Zobair alias Delwar and Maulana Tajul Islam, Md Obaidur Rahman, the then deputy commissioner (east),and Khan Syed Hasan, the then deputy commissioner (south) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), are also in abroad, the sources said. Most of them are now in Pakistan, the sources added. Of the fugitive accused, Maulana Tajuddin and Babu are the brothers of the detained former deputy minister of the BNP, Abdus Salam Pintu. Awami League (AL) has chalked out a two-day programme to observe the seventh anniversary of the August-21 grenade attack on its party rally. Programs: 21 August: The programme will begin through placing wreaths at the memorial plaque in front of the Awami League central office on Bangabandhu Avenue, where the attack was carried out in 2004, in honour of the deceased leaders and workers at 11:00 AM tomorrow. AL president & Prime Minster Sheikh Hasina and party leaders will place wreath. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will meet with the family members of deceased leaders and workers at 5 PM followed by Iftar at Ganobhaban. 22 August: A discussion will be held at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the capital on August 22 at 3 PM. Prime Minister and AL President Sheikh Hasina will address the discussion as Chief Guest. Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam urged all to observe the day with revere and solemnity and to attend the discussion programme. |
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