Ruling party leader busts 'hidden story' in Bangladesh

Member of the advisory council of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League [BAL], Abdul Jalil, during interview with London based Bangla television channel said, "Ninety nine percent Awami League leaders who are in the cabinet have connections with Directorate General of Forces Intelligence [DGFI, millitary intelligence agency in Bangladesh."

Jalil said, 90% BAL leaders in the cabinet have connections with DGFI.

The channel, which took the interview, is now facing pressure from many quarters not to broadcast it. When contacted by bdnews24.com, a pioneer news agency in Bangladesh, Firoz Khan, chairman of the Bangla TV channel, said that they had recorded the interview for a programme titled 'Janatar Mancha'.

They had only broadcast a brief portion of the interview in their news bulletin, he said, adding that the channel has taken interviews of some more politicians. Asked when Jalil's interview would be telecast, Khan could not give any specific schedule or date.

Abdul Jalil has said he made a mistake by not going against the party chief, Sheikh Hasina [who is now the Prime Minister in Bangladesh], on his return to the country to protect his post during the 2007-2008 caretaker government regime. "It was my mistake not to go against her.

Now reduced to a member of the party's advisory committee, a body without much say in the organisational matters, the ruling party MP is currently on a visit to London, UK.

"Sheikh Hasina ordered me from America to take rest," he said, adding he did not protest the leader's command. "My decision was wrong. I should have taken her head-on."

Jalil said the party advisory council has no function now and there is no chance to make it effective. Terming himself and other veteran Awami League leaders mere activists, Jalil said it was a ploy to oust the activists from politics.

Asked whether there was any agreement between the ruling partyL and the militarty controlled interim government in the elections, he said: "It might have happened."

"I did not contest the elections on the basis of any understanding. People of my constituency love me and I stay with them", jalil said.

He said Hasina had done injustice by making sycophants members of the party presidium. He said it was not possible to implement the manifesto of the party with the newcomers. "They do not have any experience. All of them are new. What do they understand of the party organisation?"

Asked whether the party had any understanding with the heroes of takeover on January 11, 2007 by army, he said: "If it was not that, why I had been kept inactive as party general secretary for the last two years."

"I am the legitimate general secretary, according to party constitution of Awami League. "Why [Syed Ashraful Islam] was given the post of general secretary? It could not be done if there was no understanding with the caretaker government," Jalil said.

"On return home six months after having treatment from abroad I got my post back. Zillur Rahman was happy to see me.. "But later Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana asked Zillur Rahman to change the decision."

"I was arrested because the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence [DGFI] could not bring me under their influence. "I was then giving statement in favour of Sheikh Hasina. Some of my friends were speaking against her and DGFI wanted me to speak like them. But I did not do so.

"Sheikh Hasina is my leader. If there is a need for any change it should be done by the party, not by external forces under orders from DGFI", he said.

"I told them I would not be able to do that. It was my offence since I did not obey their orders. That's why I was given punishment instead of reward," Jalil said.

He said Sheikh Rehana [younger sister of the Prime Minister] was controlling the party [Bangladesh Awami League] from the backstage and added that she was doing everything in consultation with Hasina.

Talking about deals with a Swedish company for sugar and edible oil, he said: "Enquiring through the Swedish embassy it was found that the address of the company was fake. After canceling the deal, Faruq Khan asked the company to submit their tender again. The address was false even the next time. Why did he do that over and over again? Later, we found that he [Faruk Khan, commerce minister in Bangladesh] had personal relation with the company."

Talking about the activities of the new Awami League committee, Jalil questioned: "Is it possible to work with the novice party men? It took us 50 years to get such position in the party."

Asked about his 'April 30 trump card drama' — the deadline Jalil announced for the BNP-led government to fall in 2006 as well signing of a treaty with Khelafat Majlish, an Islamist political party in Bangladesh for establishment of Shairah Law if Awami League comes in power, the Awami League leader said: "It was not only my decision. The leader [Hasina] had approved of that. I did not do anything without her approval. "I have documentary evidence. I have asked for collecting the news reports on the April 30 trump card.

"I will present both the reports of trump card and a five-point agreement. I was not alone, I was made a victim. Sheikh Hasina had contribution to the five-point agreement," he claimed. Jalil said: "My offence was that I was loyal to her."

On the success of the Awami League-led government in Bangladesh, which won landslide victory during election in 2008 [December], Jalil said: "I hoped that there would be more success. The success achieved so far was not up to our expectation."

"Power crisis has remained a nagging problem. We could not add a single megawatt of electricity to the power grid," said Jalil.

Abdul Jalil resigned his post on July 21 for 'not being allowed to discharge duty for the upcoming council." He was elected general secretary in the 19th council of the party in December 2002. Jalil was arrested and jailed on corruption charges on May 28, 2007, during the state of emergency, along with many other politicians. He was later paroled by the caretaker government on Mar 2 last year to seek medical treatment in Singapore after falling ill in jail.

During his detention and while being treated abroad, the outspoken Jalil was reported on a number of occasions criticising Hasina's rule of the party, and saying there was no democracy within Awami League. He denied the statements after his release on bail ahead of the Dec 2008 general elections. He said he was tortured and forced to make such statements during his detention.

Following the interview with the London based Bangla TV channel, veteran politician Abdul Jalil was physcially assaulted on a street in London by a group of Awami League activists. Some 10-12 activists of the BAL's youth front assaulted him after the BAL advisory council member had got down from his car to open the money exchange of Mercantile Bank at Coventry Road, witnesses said.

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Ruling party leader busts 'hidden story' in Bangladesh

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