Staff Reporter
Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader stated he is unaware of the whereabouts of former Inspector General of Police Benazir Ahmed, who faces allegations of amassing wealth illegally.
Quader, who also serves as the Minister of Road Transport and Bridges, assured that Ahmed remains under judicial scrutiny, noting that the court will determine the timeline for his potential arrest and incarceration following the Anti-Corruption Commission's (ACC) formal case filing.
Obaidul Quader made this announcement while addressing a press conference at the political office of Awami League President Sheikh Hasina in Dhanmondi on Friday afternoon.
In response to a journalist's question about whether Benazir Ahmed should be arrested, Quader remarked, "There is a due process for this. The Anti-Corruption Commission is currently investigating the matter. If the ACC files a case, it will be up to the court to decide when to arrest and imprison him. It will proceed through the judicial process. What directive can we, the government, give?"
When asked about the BNP's statement that it would compile a list of individuals involved in corruption, including former army chief Aziz Ahmed and Benazir Ahmed, Quader responded that if such a list is made, it should first include the names of BNP leaders.
"BNP is the master of corruption and looting. If BNP prepares a list of corrupt people in the country, the names of BNP leaders will come first," Quader asserted.
Responding to the BNP's claim that the Awami League cannot avoid responsibility for Aziz and Benazir, Quader pointed out that BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has held his position for many years, in violation of the party's constitution.
"BNP does not practice democracy within the party. How will they establish democracy in the country?" he said.
Quader acknowledged that democracy is not perfect anywhere in the world but emphasized that the Awami League is striving to improve it. "We do not claim that our democracy is perfect but we are trying to make it perfect. Our Prime Minister (Sheikh Hasina) is sincere about it," he added.
He criticized the BNP's history with democracy, referring to their period in power as a "democracy of curfew." Quader recounted the BNP's "Yes/No vote" with 114 percent voter turnout and the listing of 1.23 crore fake voters, accusing them of bringing democracy to the brink of destruction and making the electoral system a farce.
"The BNP leaders' talk about democracy means the devil listening to the scriptures," Quader said.
He further condemned the corruption during the BNP's regime, highlighting the establishment of Hawa Bhaban as a center of graft and looting. "Now they talk about corruption. What kind of punishment did they give to the people who were involved in graft during the BNP period? The AL government is taking actions against the corrupt. The government has not established the culture of impunity like the BNP," he concluded.
AL organising secretaries BM Mozammel Haque, Mirza Azam and Afzal Hossain, relief and social welfare secretary Aminul Islam Amin, education and human resources secretary Shamsunnahar Chapa, office secretary Barrister Biplab Barua, deputy office secretary Sayem Khan and Dhaka South City AL vice president Dr Dilip Roy were present, among others.
