PM knows how to show humanity, Anisul tells pro BNP lawyers

Regarding BNP’s demand to allow their ailing party chief Khaleda Zia’s treatment abroad, Law Minister Anisul Huq has said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina knows how to show humanity.

“We have no lack of humanity. We know how to show humanity and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina must know how to show humanity,” the Law Minister told a delegation of pro-BNP lawyers when they met him at his office at Secretariat in Dhaka on Tuesday.

A delegation led by Advocate Fazlur Rahman, member secretary of Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Foru, met the Law Minister and submitted the memorandum to him.

The leaders of Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum handed over a memorandum to the minister asking the government to allow BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia’s treatment abroad.

The Law Minister further said, “I would like to remind you that when Khaleda Zia was released following a plea of her family, the Prime Minister then considered the matter on humanitarian ground.”

No demand was made the then time of Khaleda’s release but she (Sheikh Hasina) released her own initiative, added Anisul Huq.

He further said, “Although you have come from Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum but we are in a forum. We were all but colleagues at one time. Although my license is suspended but I am still one of you.”

About Section 410, the Law Minister said, “Look, I don’t want to discuss Section 401 with you. You are my guest. We have differences of opinion on law. I also have differences of opinion with you.”

He said, “I will examine the memorandum you have given. Discussion is needed before reaching in a decision. We will do that.”

In the memorandum, the lawyers said the BNP chairperson and three-time (former) Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has been receiving treatment in Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of Evercare Hospital in a critical condition.

They said the specialist doctors who are treating her have already given an opinion to send her abroad for advanced treatment. “We the lawyers are concerned over the deterioration of health condition of the country’s three-time former Prime Minister…we think it’s imperative to allow her to go abroad for advanced treatment in a bid to save her life.”

They mentioned that the government released Khaleda as per section 401 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) with two conditions and the tenure of her release was extended thrice.

“She didn’t violate any condition so far. The government can anytime make an arrangement for Khaleda Zia’s treatment abroad by issuing a fresh gazette notification without imposing any condition under section 401 (1)or issuing a new order under subsection 6 of 401. In this case, there’s no legal barrier. Rather, such a decision of the government will be lawful,” the lawyers said.

Senior lawyers AJ Mohammad Ali, Advocate Joynul Abedin, Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon, Md Bodruddoza Chowdhury, Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal, Advocate Md Fazlur Rahman, Nitai Roy Chodhury, Ahmed Azam Khan, Masud Ahmed Talukder, Taimur Alam Khandaker, Abed Raza, Md Abdul Zabbar Bhuiyan, Gazi Qamrul Islam Sazal, Mohammad Ali and Omar Faruk Faruki were present at that time.

GY