DT e-Paper 06 April 2017

SECOND EDITION
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017 | Chaitra 23, 1423, Rajab 8, 1438 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 339 | www.dhakatribune.com | 24 pages plus 16-page Arts & Letters supplement | Price: Tk10
IPU conference
ends with
Dhaka
Declaration › 3
Is a Teesta deal
in the offing? › 2
ABU SIDDIQUE
PM’s India tour:
Three nuke
deals, one MoU
on the cards › 3

2
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
News
Is a Teesta deal in the offing?
• Ashis Bishwas, Eastern India
Forty-eight hours ahead of the proposed
summit level talks between
Bangladesh and India in Delhi,
prospects for a new, wide-ranging
comprehensive bilateral agreement
have never looked brighter.
After prolonged discussions
and intense preparations involving
diplomats, politicians and experts
during the last few weeks in Dhaka
and Delhi, there is now every possibility
of the countries reaching
an agreement on the contentious
Teesta water sharing issue.
However, officials on both sides
remain tight-lipped, well aware that
no agreement is ever finalised until
the last signature has been recorded.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee’s dramatic refusal at the last
minute to endorse the Teesta water-sharing
proposal during the UPA
regime is a prickly reminder of this.
The question arises, how has the
situation between the two countries
changed?
First, the initial indications from
all sides – Bangladesh, India and on
Teesta, West Bengal – in the preliminary
run to the April 7 to April
10 talks have been highly positive
so far. True, Mamata raised her
anti-Delhi campaign pitch higher,
alleging that she and Bengal were
being ignored and that she would
not accept any proposal that would
harm her state, despite all her
warmth towards Bangladesh.
But now she has agreed to attend
the proceedings, and will
reach Delhi tomorrow night. Incidentally
Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina will also reach the Indian
capital the same night.
Having burnt their fingers once
before, the now BJP-led central
government is leaving nothing
to chance in its bid to conclude a
successful agreement with India’s
eastern neighbour.
President Pranab Mukherjee,
who is on familiar “tui” terms with
Mamata, has sent her an invitation
letter for the ceremonial dinner at
Rashtrapati Bhavan on April 8, to
honour the visiting Bangladeshi
Indians rethinking ties with Bangladesh
• Ashis Biswas, from Kolkata
Trade and commerce between Bangladesh
and India has increased at an unprecedented
rate as the two countries
have been able to further consolidate
their relations in the last few decades.
It, however, did not increase in parallel
with the growing demand. Despite
demands from business groups, trade
facilities between the countries could
not be expanded to a satisfactory level
courtesy of varied political obligations.
According to political analysts, it will
Mamata to visit Delhi during PM Hasina’s trip
• Shilajit Kar Bhowmik
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee will head to New Delhi
on April 7, putting her in the city
at the same time as Bangladesh
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Mamata’s inflexibility has long
stood in the way of negotiations
between India and Bangladesh
regarding the Teesta water issue.
“West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee has finally responded
positively to the invitation
extended by the President of
India at Rashtrapati Bhavan,” said
a source in the chief minister’s office
yesterday, on strict condition
of anonymity.
“She is likely to meet Prime
Minister Narendra Modi there.”
Mamata will leave for New Delhi
on April 7, the same day that
PM Sheikh Hasina will begin her
own four-day visit to the Indian
capital.
The West Bengal chief minister
will also reportedly attend a lunch
and dinner hosted by President
Pranab Mukherjee on April 8.
Sources further claimed that
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi looks on as Bangladeshi Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee hug each
other at the flag off ceremony of bus services between Bangladesh and India,
in Dhaka on June 6, 2015
PTI
although Mamata maintains her
tough stance on Teesta, she has
no objection to holding a dialogue
to find an “amicable solution” to
the issue.
prime minister. Her Indian counterpart
Narendra Modi will attend, and
Minister for External Affairs Sushma
Swaraj is also expected to be present.
Pranab Mukherjee, not content
with having sent off the invitation,
has also followed up by speaking
to Mamata Banerjee on the phone.
Mamata accepted the invitation.
Kolkata-based analysts said Pranab
Mukherjee had left no options
for the Bengal chief minister, other
than an acceptance. He has rendered
Mamata’s earlier allegations
about not being kept in the loop on
Indo-Bangla talks ineffective.
There are now two very positive
indicators that the proposed
Indo-Bangla dialogue would make
substantial progress. First Sheikh
Hasina will visit Delhi, having cancelled
a trip earlier following some
negative signs. Second, Mamata
Banerjee, who cried off dramatically
from attending similar talks in Dhaka
on Teesta, has also agreed to visit
Delhi. This could not have happened
unless both leaders were convinced
that working out an accord over the
Teesta waters would be possible.
Mamata would meet Modi and
Hasina on a one-on-one basis as
well, official sources said.
Observers say that Mamata is also
attending the Delhi parleys not least
because her position vis-à-vis the
centre has weakened considerably
of late, compared to the dominance
she enjoyed with the Congress (I)-
led UPA ministry earlier. The multi-crore
rupees Sarada chit fund and
Narada scams where many senior
be lucrative for both countries if they
can come forward to further tighten
their economic ties with the spirit of
prevailing pleasant relations.
There has been a new assessment of
Bangladesh in West Bengal and northeast
Indian states over the past few decades,
and the Indian people now hold a
more positive view of the country than
before, they said. The changes in their
outlook are a product of the improved
relationships between political parties
and leaderships of the two countries.
And, though the people in the northeast
states and West Bengal raise objections
that Bangladeshis are infiltrating India,
there has been a change in their thinking
due to reciprocities and shared understandings.
West Bengal and Assam apart,
the other northeast states are demanding
boosting India’s trade relations with Dhaka.
It is assumed that the changes
stemmed from Bangladesh’s dramatic
economic growth as the country has
chalked out detailed plans for developing
its infrastructure, energy and
communication sectors. Such an all-out
development initiative within a limited
Mamata will call in on the
Rashtrapati Bhavan – the official
residence of the Indian president
– and shares a good rapport with
Sheikh Hasina, sources said. •
leaders of her Trinamool Congress
(TMC) party are known to be involved,
have taken their toll.
During her tenure, Bengal’s indebtedness
to the centre has risen
from Rs190,000 crore to around
Rs320,000 crore. Her government
has failed to meet the DA and other
requirements for its large work
force for some time and is critically
dependant on the centre for sustaining
public welfare schemes.
As for the centre, it has refused
to write off or to announce a moratorium
for the state. With the
ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
winning an absolute majority in
2014 Lok Sabha polls, the TMC’s
victory in 34 out of 42 seats in
Bengal became meaningless. “The
TMC’s bargaining power vis-à-vis
time had never been undertaken in this
region, even in the last 100 years.
These are the very factors that contribute
to the rise of a new Bangladesh,
the analysts observed.
With an estimated GDP of $230bn, the
size of Bangladesh’s economy is almost
equal to a first-tier state of India, while
that of West Bengal is less than $150bn.
This is because the northeast states are
much more inclined to boost trade relations
with Bangladesh, and the federal
government backs them up as well.
With Assam demanding Rs1,000 crore
the centre is at an all time low,” says
CPI leader Manju Majumdar.
Interestingly, no other party in
Bengal, from the BJP to the CPI, the
CPI(M), the Cong(I) or others, opposed
the Teesta water-sharing deal
with Bangladesh. “The rights of a
lower riparian country must be honoured
and many of us had homes in
Bangladesh” is a common sentiment.
CPI(M) leader Mohammad Salim
adds: “They accuse a section
of Bangladeshis of crossing over
into India illegally. Why don’t they
[TMC] understand that if Bangladesh
gets little water in its north,
chances of such illegal crossings
will increase. Will the TMC accept
the responsibility ?”
In contrast, Prime Minister Modi,
according to Delhi-based BJP leaders,
ignoring his uneasiness in dealing
with Mamata, has left it to President
Pranab Mukherjee to bring her and
Sheikh Hasina closer on the Teesta
issue. He has excellent relations with
the Bangladeshi prime minister.
The next few days would put
Pranab Mukherjee’s powers of persuasion
to a stiff test, but the Indian
president is past master at this
role, having carried out such exercises
for the UPA in the past.
As stated in these columns before,
the centre now holds the whip hand
vis-à-vis the TMC. “If push comes to
shove, the centre will go public by
releasing the Kalyan Rudra Expert
committee report on the Teesta waters,
which Mamata Banerjee never
did, because it did not endorse her
alarmist scenarios about North Bengal’s
economy. Besides, the Union
Ministry of Water Resources headed
by Uma Bharati, also has prepared a
special report on the possible impact
of Teesta water sharing on Bengal.
If necessary, they will show Mamata
these details. If she still does not
agree, the BJP can go ahead and
conclude a treaty with Dhaka, with
or without her on board,” says a Bengal-based
BJP leader.
Most Kolkata-based leaders do
not feel the situation would worsen
to that level, as they keep their fingers
crossed along with the people
of both countries. •
from the Centre for an airport in Guwahati,
it suggested that the state increase trade
and communication with Dhaka so the
Assamese can reach the East and South
East Asian countries via Bangladesh and
export goods to the countries. The northeast
states, too, demand that more border
haats (markets) be opened so they can
strengthen their ties with Dhaka.
Moreover, the Indians are rethinking
their ties with Dhaka as Bangladesh
has already preceded India in terms of
women’s education and employment,
and child health. •

News 3
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
136th IPU assembly ends with
Dhaka Declaration
DT
• Mohammad Abu Bakar
Siddique
The 136th assembly of Inter-Parliamentary
Union (IPU) wrapped
up in Dhaka yesterday with the
Dhaka Declaration calling to end all
inequalities around the world and
stop outside interference in the internal
matters of a sovereign state.
Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad
Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury
announced the conclusion of
the five-day conference at Bangabandhu
International Conference
Centre (BICC).
A draft resolution with 18 points
was passed by the IPU Standing
Committee on Peace and International
Security on Tuesday and
adopted by the General Assembly
on the last day.
The conference, which began
on Saturday with the theme “Readdressing
inequalities: delivering
on dignity and well-being for all,”
was attended by around 1,500 delegates
from 131 countries.
The event was organised jointly
by Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad and
the IPU.
During the conference, parliamentarians
from around the world
discussed ways to fight widening
inequalities, violence and militancy
as a global problem.
The conversation started with
Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi’s
call to fight against inequality – a
threat to peace and security and a
form of economic violence – during
his keynote speech at the opening
ceremony.
PM’S INDIA TOUR
Three nuke deals, one MoU
on the cards
• Aminur Rahman Rasel
India and Bangladesh are likely to
sign three civilian nuclear deals
and one memorandum of understanding
(MoU) on nuclear cooperation
during Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina’s upcoming visit to India.
“We have already finalised the
drafts to sign three civilian nuclear
deals and an MoU when the prime
minister tours India,” an official of
the Science and Technology Ministry
told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday,
requesting anonymity.
The first deal is meant for mutual
cooperation for peaceful use
of nuclear energy between the two
countries.
The second one is supposed to
be inked by Bangladesh Atomic Energy
Commission, an agency of the
ministry, and Global Centre for Nuclear
Energy Partnership under India’s
Department of Atomic Energy
on cooperation regarding nuclear
power plant project in Bangladesh.
President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, along with IPU President Saber Hossain Chowdhury, greet IPU
guests at a dinner hosted at Bangabhaban yesterday
BSS
The third and last of the deals
is aimed to be sealed by the atomic
energy regulators of both the
countries for exchanging technical
information and support in regulation
of nuclear safety and radiation
protection.
Meanwhile, the MoU is actually
tripartite in its kind since it engages
Russia for a successful implementation
of Bangladesh’s first ever
nuclear power plant at Rooppur in
Pabna with a 2400MW capacity.
The deal with the Indian atomic
energy agency and regulatory body
each is also planned to get technical
and intellectual suggestion and support
for the nuclear plant project.
Russia helped India build a nuclear
plant at Kudankulam in its
southern region. Hence, the Indian
agency and regulator are highly
expected to support Bangladesh
about the 2400MW plant.
The MoU will make India another
step closer to help Bangladesh in the
much-hyped project, which, however,
may not be signed during the
prime minister’s four-day trip starting
from April 7, some Bangladeshi
officials hinted. Russia has already
given its green signal about the MoU.
According to the draft of the
MoU that will be valid for 15 years,
the three countries exchanging
views and experience will ensure
safe operation of the plant and help
its staff increase efficiency.
The three countries will help ensure
proper radioactive waste management,
operation, control and
maintenance of the plant after it is
successfully installed, the draft adds.
Aiming at establishing the plant,
the three parties, in a written
agreement, will agree to supply
machinery.
Either of the three countries will
be allowed to pull out of the project
by issuing a six-month prior notice.
Before completion of the deal on
the plant, the parties will discuss
to decide whether the MoU will be
renewed.•
The parliamentarians agreed
that extreme inequalities come at
a high cost to society, stalling economic
growth and undermining
democratic process.
“We cannot continue to view the
gap between rich and poor as business
as usual. This assembly is one of
many steps that need to be taken to
ensure that the well-being and dignity
of all is respected,” said IPU President
Saber Hossain Chowdhury.
The IPU member states also
adopted a comprehensive resolution
to ensure women’s access to
financial mechanisms.
The 136th assembly observed
a minute of silence in memory of
the victims of the terrorist attacks
in St Petersburg, Russia. During the
assembly, IPU President Saber Hossain
Chowdhury condemned the
chemical attack in the town of Khan
Sheikhoun in Idlib province, Syria.
The international community
was also urged to stand beside the
people of Yemen, South Sudan,
Kenya and Somalia, affected by
war, drought and famine.
In a press conference after the
concluding ceremony, the IPU president
said with this event, Bangladesh’s
relationship with the rest of
the world had gotten stronger.
He also called the conference
“green” - the IPU would take measures
to compensate for the carbon
emission caused by this five-day
event. •
Ekush heads home
• FM Mizanur Rahaman,
Chittagong
A court in Chittagong handed over
Ekush, the abandoned newborn
boy who was found inside a drain
on February 21, to his new parents
yesterday.
On March 29, Chittagong Additional
Metropolitan Sessions Judge
Jannatul Ferdouce, also judge of the
Child Affairs Court, granted custody of
Ekush to Dr Jakirul Islam and his wife
Shakila Akhter.
Around 3:30pm yesterday, Ekush
was handed over to his new parents.
Chittagong Medical College Hospital
(CMCH) Neonatal Ward Assistant Registrar
Dr Debasis Kumar Roy and Ward
In-Charge Shikha Bhattacharia brought
the baby boy from the hospital to the
court room and later gave him to the
couple in the presence of the judge.
Special Public Prosecutor MA
Fayez told the Dhaka Tribune that the
court had earlier asked the couple to
invest in education insurance worth
Tk10 lakh in Ekush’s name before
receiving custody of the baby.
“They recently purchased the
insurance from Bank Asia by depositing
an initial amount of Tk1,52,000. When
they produced the bank statement before
the court, Ekush was handed over
to them in the presence of medical
authorities,” he added.
Fayez also said the couple had renamed
the boy Abdul Khaled Md Mujib
Sekandar, as mentioned in the insurance
documents, but the court had asked
that they add “Ekush” to the name and
update the insurance documents.
The couple has also been asked to
present the corrected document and
inform the court of Ekush’s health and
well-being on July 5.
On February 21, some local Bangladesh
Chhatra League activists rescued
Ekush from a drain in Chittagong’s
Colonel Hat area. With the help of
Akbarshah police, they admitted him
to CMCH’s Neonatal Ward. •

4
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
News
Businessman to die for raping
and dismembering teen girl
Cricketer Arafat Sunny
granted bail in dowry case
• Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
A Dhaka tour operator was
yesterday sentenced to
death for raping and killing a
teenage girl and then cutting
her body into 26 pieces in a
futile attempt to cover up his
crime.
Md Saiduzzaman Bachu,
the 30-year-old owner of
Sonali Tours and Travels
based at Nahar Plaza in the
Hatirpul area of Dhaka, began
his pursuit of Roksana
Akter Rumi in 2010.
On June 1, 2012 he managed
to lure the now 15-yearold
to his office on level 12
of the plaza, where he raped
and killed her before dismembering
her body and
throwing the pieces from the
office windows.
Locals locked Bachu in
his office and handed him
over to Shahbagh police,
who arrested the Faridpur
resident a day later when
the strewn body parts
were recovered from an
alley beside Nahar Plaza and
from the roof of a nearby
building.
Md Abdus Samad, then
sub-inspector of Shahbagh
police station, filed a
case against Bachu under
Section 9(2) of the Women
and Children Repression
Prevention Act.
The charge sheet was
submitted on September 1,
2012 and the court framed
charges against the accused
on May 20, 2013.
Dhaka Women and Children
Repression Prevention
Tribunal 3 Judge Joyshree
Samaddar delivered the verdict
on Wednesday in the
absence of the convict. The
court also fined Bachu Tk1
lakh. •
• Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
The former international cricketer Arafat
Sunny was granted interim bail yesterday
after he surrendered to a Dhaka court for
allegedly demanding dowry from his ‘wife’,
Nasrin Sultana.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Nur
Nabi passed the bail order after complainant
Nasrin told the court that she had no problem
with Sunny’s bail.
According to the case statement, Sunny
married Nasrin in December 2014 with an
endowment of Tk5.1 lakh. They used to live
at the house of Nasrin’s sister in the Katasur
area of Mohammadpur.
On July 29, 2015, the 30-year-old and his
mother allegedly demanded Tk20 lakh as
dowry from Nasrin and asked her to bring the
money from her father.
Nasrin claimed that Sunny – who has been
capped 26 times by Bangladesh in ODIs and
T20s - deserted her after she refused to pay
the money.
Nasrin first filed a general diary with Mohammadpur
police station on December 25
last year after Sunny threatened to release
their personal photographs if she failed to
provide the dowry. The case reached the
court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Raihanul
Islam on 23 January this year.
Sunny had already been granted bail in
two other cases filed with the police station
under the Women and Children Repression
Prevention Act and the Information and
Communication Technology Act. •
Charges pressed against 11
alleged razakars
• Ashif Islam Shaon
The prosecution of the International Crimes
Tribunal yesterday submitted formal charges
against 11 men from Mymensingh alleging
their involvement in war crimes.
The tribunal’s investigation agency announced
on February 20 that evidence has
been found to support claims that the accused
were involved in the killing of four people and
the torture of nine, and in looting, arson and
abductions during the Liberation War in 1971.
The agency submitted their findings to the
chief prosecutor’s office and prayed to the
court for issuing arrest warrants against the
accused.
Among the 11, six are on the run and the
other five are in jail. The prisoners are Khalilur
Rahman Mir, 62, Abul Kalam, 65, Mohammad
Abdullah, 62, Mohammad Abdul Malek
Akand, 68, and Md Rois Uddin Azadi, 74.
On October 16, 2014, investigators began
probing the murders of local Liberation War
organisers Sahabuddin and Joidhar Khan alias
Taru, and of freedom fighter Nur Hossain
and Toiab Ali. •

Bangladesh shares 139th spot
in Human Development Index
• Mahadi Al Hasnat
Bangladesh advanced three
steps, thus, jointly ranking
139th with Ghana and
Zambia out of 188 countries
in the Human Development
Index (HDI), according to the
Human Development Report
(HDR) 2016.
Categorised as a “medium
human development” country
for the 13th consecutive
year, Bangladesh’s average
annual growth of HDI was
1.64%, between 1990 and
2015, which is higher than
that of many other South
Asian countries, the report
adds.
The annual report was
unveiled by the UNDP at a
programme which it jointly
organised with the Planning
Commission in Dhaka yesterday,
less than two weeks after
the report’s global launch
in Stockholm, Sweden.
With the HDI value
standing at 0.579 in 2015,
Bangladesh ranked fifth in
South Asia, lagging behind
Sri Lanka (73rd), the Maldives
(105th), India (131st) and
Bhutan (132nd) on the overall
list topped by Norway (with
0.949 HDI value).
Addressing as chief
guest, Planning Minister
AHM Mustafa Kamal termed
Bangladesh’s progress in
human development over the
last two decades significant,
saying the average annual
HDI growth is better than
many other South Asian
countries.
“Our social indicators
depict that we are doing
better in health, education
and life expectancy at birth
with the per capita income
spiraling,” he added.
Life expectancy at birth
in Bangladesh stood at 72
years, expected years of
schooling at 10.2 years, mean
years of schooling 5.2 years,
adult literacy rate 61.5, gross
national income (GNI) per
capita $3,341, the report
reads.
State Minister for Foreign
Affairs Shahriar Alam said
Bangladesh became a role
model among developing
Khaleda Zia asks HC to dismiss
arson cases against her
• Ashif Islam Shaon
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia
has challenged a lower court’s
decision to accept the charges
against her in two arson cases.
In separate petitions filed with
the High Court, Khaleda also requested
that the court cancel the
case trials. A hearing may be held
on the petitions on April 9.
In February 2015, two cases
were filed with Darussalam
Police Station accusing Khaleda
and other BNP leaders and
activists of setting fire to vehicles.
Police submitted the
charge sheet in May last year.
The lower court has asked
Khaleda to appear before it on
April 10 in order to proceed with
the indictment hearing of the
arson cases lodged against her.
The trial court concerned
took the charges into cognisance
in August 2016. •
countries as its progress in
recent years has impressed
the world.
“We have to continue our
development for the sake of
the people, especially the
marginalised and deprived
ones.”
Dr Selim Jahan, lead author
of the report, cautioning
on paying too much attention
to national averages,
said: “Though progress in
human development has
been impressive over the
past 25 years, still it [human
development] has been uneven
and human deprivations
persist.”
UNDP Bangladesh
Country Director Sudipto
Mukharjee questioned about
who has been left out in the
development process and
how and why that happened.
Devised and launched
in 1990, HDI is a measure
to assess progress in three
basic dimensions of human
development: a long and
healthy life, access to
knowledge, and access to
decent standard living. •
News 5
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Faridpur Saltha upazila
chairman suspended
• Md Wali Newaz, Faridpur
The government has suspended
Md Wahiduzzaman,
chairman of Saltha Upazila in
Faridpur, saying that a court
accepted murder charges
against him.
A circular of the LGRD Ministry
issued on March 30 says
that charge sheet in the case –
filed in 2008 – was accepted by
TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY
a court on August 22, 2016. The
order reached Saltha recently.
When contacted yesterday,
Wahiduzzaman said he would
challenge the decision as “the
information of acceptance of
the charges is not true.”
The case was filed against
him on March 22, 2008, a day
after Bhawal Jubo League general
secretary Liton Alam was
hacked to death. •
Dhaka 33 25 Chittagong 30 25 Rajshahi 33 25 Rangpur 30 22 Khulna 34 25 Barisal 33 25 Sylhet 30 22
Cox’s Bazar 31 25
RAIN LIKELY
THURSDAY, APRIL 6
DHAKA
TODAY
TOMORROW
SUN SETS 6:17PM
SUN RISES 5:45AM
YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW
34.5ºC
18.5ºC
Kumarkhali
Netrokona
Source: Accuweather/UNB
PRAYER
TIMES
Fajr: 5:15am | Zohr: 1:15pm
Asr: 5:00pm | Magrib: 6:24pm
Esha: 8:15pm
Source: Islamic Foundation

6
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Advertisement

News 7
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
New JMB leader Rajib confesses in targeted killings
• Md Tazul Islam, Gaibandha
One of the Gulshan attack masterminds
Jahangir Alam alias Rajib has
admitted his involvement in several
murders committed by militants in
Gaibandha and nearby districts in
the last couple of years, police say.
District Detective Branch Officerin-Charge
Masudur Rahman said
that the New JMB militant leader had
confessed before the court of Senior
Judicial Magistrate ASM Taskinul
Haque yesterday afternoon.
The case was filed by Gobindaganj
police last year after militants
killed hardware businessman Tarun
Datta on February 8 and show trader
Debesh Chandra Pramanik on
May 25 among other murders and
terror attacks.
Islamic State claimed responsibilities
for the murders through its
Amaq news agency.
Rajib alias Gandhi was placed
on a five-day remand in the case on
March 30 and produced before the
court Wednesday for confessional
statement.
He was arrested by the CTTC unit
from Tangail in January. He then
gave confessional statements in two
murder cases filed with Gaibandha
and one with Bogra police stations.
Rajib said that he had been involved
in the murders of journalist
DT
Dipankar Chakrabarty of Bogra on
October 2, 2004; and Gaibandha’s
village doctor Mahbubur Rahman
on June 2, 2015; and JMB member
Fazle Rabbi on July 19, 2015.
Detectives have also sought the
court’s order to remand him in New
JMB’s Sholakia Eidgah attack of July
7, 2016. •

DT
8
World
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
SOUTH ASIA
Afghan president begins
two-day visit to Indonesia
Visiting Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani held talks Wednesday
with his Indonesian counterpart
on ways to promote a moderate
version of Islam and other issues.
Ghani, the first Afghan president
to visit the world’s largest
Muslim-populated nation, is
scheduled to go on to Singapore
after his two-day stay. He praised
Indonesia’s “remarkable story” in
defusing conflict and practising
statesmanship. AFP
INDIA
Muslim man dies after
attack by cow vigilantes
A Muslim man has died after he was
attacked by hundreds of vigilantes
while transporting cows in India,
police said Wednesday, as tensions
rose over the slaughter of an animal
Hindus consider sacred. Police said
they had registered a murder case
over Pehlu Khan’s death in hospital
on Monday, two days after a mob
attacked his cattle truck on a highway
in Rajasthan. AFP
CHINA
China calls for restraint
after N Korean missile test
China on Wednesday appealed for
restraint from all relevant parties
following North Korea’s latest ballistic
missile test. Without directly
condemning Pyongyang’s latest
missile test, simply noting that
Beijing’s stance on the matter was
“clear,” Chinese foreign ministry
spokesperson Hua Chunying urged
restraint and that relevant parties
should refrain from any action that
could escalate tensions. EFE
ASIA PACIFIC
Ten Thai soldiers wanted
over death of conscript
Thai police have accused ten
soldiers of beating a 22-year-old
army conscript to death in a
military prison, as the army races
to limit damage from the scandal
unfolding during its annual draft.
News of the death on April 1
emerged just as the armed forces
launched an annual conscription
exercise. AFP
MIDDLE EAST
IS suicide bombers kill 31
in Iraq’s Tikrit
Militants opened fire and later
blew themselves up in the Iraqi
city of Tikrit, killing at least
31 people in an attack claimed
Wednesday by the IS. Police
and army officers said that the
attack, which began on Tuesday
night, also wounded at least 42
people. AFP
Russia defends Syria against
chemical attack outcry
• Tribune Desk
270,000 Syrians have right to
bring families to Germany
• Reuters, Berlin
Around 270,000 Syrians in Germany
have the right to bring in their
family members, a newspaper
said on Wednesday, a statistic that
could fuel the debate about migration
less than six months before a
national election.
Mass-selling tabloid Bild cited
a government paper as showing a
total of 431,376 Syrians applied for
asylum in Germany in 2015 and
2016 and said that of those 267,500
would be entitled to family reunifications
in Germany.
Neither the Federal Office for
Migration and Refugees (BAMF)
nor the Interior Ministry immediately
responded to requests for
comment on the report.
In 2016, the government decided
to suspend family reunifications
for two years for migrants
who get “subsidiary protection”
- granted to people who are not
considered as being persecuted
individually but in whose home
county there is or war, torture or
other inhumane treatment. •
Russia stood by its ally Damascus
on Wednesday ahead of a UN Security
Council meeting to address accusations
the Syrian government
launched a chemical weapons attack
that killed scores of civilians.
At least 72 people, among them
20 children, were killed in Tuesday’s
attack in rebel-held Khan Sheikhun,
and dozens more were left gasping
for air, convulsing, and foaming at
the mouth, doctors said.
The World Health Organisation
said there was reason to suspect a
chemical attack, with some victims
displaying symptoms suggesting
exposure to “a category of chemicals
that includes nerve agents.”
Britain, France and the US have
circulated a draft Security Council
resolution demanding a swift investigation,
after pointing the finger
at President Bashar al-Assad’s
government for the attack.
But Moscow, which launched
a military intervention in 2015 in
support of Assad’s forces, said the
deaths were caused when a Syrian
air strike hit a “terrorist warehouse”
used for making bombs
containing “toxic substances”.
It also said it would continue its
military campaign in support of
government forces.
Syria’s army has denied any
use of chemical weapons, saying
it “has never used them, any time,
anywhere, and will not do so in the
future.”
But its denials have done little
to quiet international condemnation,
with UN chief Antonio Guterres
on Wednesday saying the
“horrific events” showed that “war
crimes are going on in Syria”.
Pope Francis said he was “horrified”
by the “unacceptable massacre...
where dozens of defenseless
people, including many children,
were killed.”
The incident is the first time
Washington has accused Assad
of using sarin since 2013, when
hundreds of people died in an attack
on a Damascus suburb. At
that time, Washington said Assad
had crossed a “red line” set by
then-President Barack Obama. •
China blasts India over Dalai Lama visit to Arunachal
• Tribune Desk
China criticised India on Wednesday for
allowing the Dalai Lama to visit a disputed
border region, saying it did not
consider the matter a purely internal
Indian affair and warning it would damage
bilateral relations.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua
Chunying told reporters that the visit
by the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader
“severely harms China’s interests and
the China-India relationship.”
Hua rejected arguments that the
trip was solely religious in nature, and
said China would lodge a formal protest
with New Delhi.
India “in disregard of China’s concerns,
invited the Dalai Lama to visit
the disputed border area between
China and India,” Hua said. In doing so,
A man carries the body of a dead child, after a suspected gas attack in the town
of Khan Sheikhoun in rebel-held Idlib, Syria on April 4
REUTERS
Picture shows a poster of exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama at
Bomdila in Arunachal Pradesh state on April 5
AFP
Suicide blast targeting census
team kills six in Pakistan
• Reuters, Lahore
The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility
for a suicide attack on
an army census team that killed at
least six people and wounded 18
in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore
on Wednesday.
Punjab government spokesman
Malik Ahmed Khan said the blast,
which hit an army vehicle taking
part in Pakistan’s first census in
nearly two decades, killed four
soldiers and two civilians.
Scores of people have been
India had violated its commitments to
China on Tibet-related issues, a move
that would “stir up troubles over the
border issue and go against the sound
development of bilateral ties,” she said.
India said Tuesday that China should
not interfere in its domestic issues, as
the Dalai Lama began a week-long visit
to Arunachal Pradesh.
Indian Junior Home Minister Kiren
Rijiju said Tuesday that New Delhi respects
Beijing’s “one China” policy and
expects China to accept India’s policies.
The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959
amid an uprising against Chinese rule in
Tibet, which Communist forces had occupied
earlier in the decade. China considers
him a separatist seeking Tibet’s
independence, while the Dalai Lama
says he merely advocates substantial
autonomy and protection of the region’s
native Buddhist culture.
The Dalai Lama is to travel to the
district of Tawang on Thursday, where
he is scheduled to consecrate a monastery
and address his followers. People
from nearby areas, including from
the Himalayan country of Bhutan,
which borders Arunachal Pradesh,
were already gathering at Tawang, local
officials said. •
killed since the beginning of the
year in a series of attacks that have
dashed hopes of an end to the violence
of recent years and stepped
up pressure on Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif’s government to improve
security.
The apparent targeting of personnel
involved in the census, the
first in 19 years, underlined the
challenge to government institutions
in Pakistan.
Pakistan army chief General Qamar
Javed Bajwa said the census
would be completed “at any cost”. •

EU Parliament adopts Brexit red lines
• AFP, Strasbourg
The European Parliament on
Wednesday overwhelmingly
adopted its “red lines” for tough
Brexit negotiations, insisting Britain
first agree divorce terms before
striking a new trade deal.
The parliament, which will
have the final say on any Brexit
deal, became the first EU body to
take a formal stand on the talks,
just a week after British Prime
Minister Theresa May formally
triggered the process for leaving
the bloc.
The vote was 516 for, 133 against
and 50 abstentions.
“You will set the tone for Britain,”
the bloc’s Brexit negotiator
Michel Barnier told MEPs in Strasbourg,
France, just before the
vote.
The EU has rejected May’s call
in her letter for talks on the terms
of the divorce and on a future
Germany
cracks down on
child marriages
• AFP, Berlin
Germany’s cabinet Wednesday
moved to ban child marriages after
the recent mass refugee influx
brought in many couples where one
or both partners were aged under 18.
The new law, set to receive parliamentary
approval by July, is seen
as a protective move especially for
girls by annulling foreign marriages
involving minors.
It will allow youth welfare workers
to take into care underaged girls
even if they were legally married
abroad and, if deemed necessary,
separate them from their husbands.
“Children do not belong in the
marriage registry office or the wedding
hall,” said Justice Minister
Heiko Maas.
“We must not tolerate any marriages
that harm minors in their development.”
“The underaged must be protected
as much as possible,” he added,
stressing that no minor must suffer
restrictions on their asylum or
residential status as a result of the
change.
The age of consent for all marriages
in Germany will be raised
from 16 to 18 years. Currently in
some cases an 18-year-old is allowed
to marry a 16-year-old.
Foreign marriages involving
spouses under 16 will be considered
invalid, and those involving 16
or 17-year-olds can be annulled by
family courts.
Rare exceptions are possible but
only if the couple are now both adults
and both want to stay married. •
trade deal to be held in parallel.
The resolution won the backing
of all the major groups in the
parliament, from the conservative
European People’s Party (EPP), the
biggest bloc, to the Socialists and
Democrats alliance, as well as the
ALDE liberals, the Greens and the
leftist parliamentary group GUE.
French presidential hopefuls debate
economy, Europe
• AFP, Paris
All 11 candidates for the French
presidency fought for the spotlight
in a marathon debate Tuesday,
setting out their visions for turning
around a moribund economy
and redefining France’s place in
Europe.
But far-right leader Marine Le
Pen, 48, said the answer lies in
“economic patriotism”, vowing
to fight “out-of-control globalisation”
with her anti-EU agenda.
Former prime minister Francois
Fillon, under pressure after
being charged with misuse of public
funds, said France’s grinding
10% unemployment and massive
debt combined to create an “explosive
situation”.
Communist-backed Jean-Luc
World
Former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party Nigel Farage gestures
during speeches at the EU Parliament in Strasbourg, France on April 5
AFP
‘United parliament’
“It’s key to have a united European
parliament together with the
EU negotiator and the European
Council,” Guy Verhofstadt, the
Liberal leader and parliament’s
Brexit negotiator, told MEPs.
The EPP’s German leader Manfred
Weber told the assembly “we
Melenchon, 65, who has been
rising in the polls, came out slugging
against big business, saying it
should “pay back” its riches.
For his part Benoit Hamon, who
is carrying the Socialist banner as
Francois Hollande nears the end
of a deeply unpopular presidency,
want a fair and constructive atmosphere,”
but warned Britain
cannot get a better deal leaving
than staying inside the bloc.
He also said the EU will insist
Britain pay for its outstanding financial
commitments until it leaves the
bloc and will seek assurances over
the border between EU member Ireland
and Northern Ireland.
The guidelines, which Weber
calls “red lines”, reinforce the
draft guidelines unveiled last Friday
by EU President Donald Tusk.
But the 27 countries will not formally
approve the Tusk guidelines
until a summit on April 29.
The resolution called for protecting
the rights of the three million
European citizens living in
Britain, and the one million Britons
residing in EU countries.
Immigration helped fuel the
Brexit campaign which culminated
in the shock vote by Britons last
June to leave the bloc. •
vowed to “demolish” new labour
laws seen as too pro-business, and
create one million jobs in the next
five years.
He took a swipe at Fillon, who
has vowed to cut half a million
jobs from the country’s bloated
civil service. •
Malaysia passes child sex crimes law,
does not ban child marriage
• Reuters, Kuala Lumpur
A Malaysian MP said girls as young as
nine were “physically and spiritually”
ready for marriage, as the Muslim-majority
Southeast Asian country passed a
law on sexual offences against children
without criminalising child marriage.
Shabudin Yahaya, a member of the
Barisan Nasional coalition, made the
comments in response to a proposal
by an opposition member of parliament
to amend the Sexual Offences
Against Children bill to include a ban
Left to right, campaign posters for candidates Marine Le Pen, Jean-Luc
Melenchon, and Benoit Hamon are seen in Paris on April 5
REUTERS
on child marriages.
The proposal was voted down by
the majority of parliament.
“They reach puberty at the age
of nine or 12. And at that time, their
body is already akin to them being 18
years old. So physically and spiritually,
it is not a barrier for the girl to marry,”
Shabudin said on Tuesday during a debate
on the bill.
He also said there was “nothing
wrong” with a rape victim marrying
her rapist as she would then not face
a “bleak future”.
Shabudin’s comments sparked
outrage on social media, with some
opposition politicians asking for him
to be fired.
In a statement on Wednesday,
Shabudin said his comments were taken
out of context, and that marriage
was not a “back door exit to legalise
rape.” He said he rejected the motion
to ban child marriages as it was contrary
to provisions in sharia law.
Under Islamic law, children younger
than 16 can get married if the Shariah
courts allow it. •
9
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
USA
Trump blames Obama for
Syria attack
The scale and horror of Tuesday’s
gas attack on civilians in Idlib highlighted
the vacuum in the Trump
administration’s foreign policy making:
the incident was met first by
silence, then by criticism of Barack
Obama. Donald Trump described
the attack, which killed scores of
victims, including many children, as
a direct “consequence” of his predecessor’s
Syria policy. REUTERS
THE AMERICAS
Clashes as Venezuelans
protest in political crisis
Protesters clashed with police in
Venezuela Tuesday as the opposition
mobilised against moves to
tighten President Nicolas Maduro’s
grip on power and vowed to continue
demonstrations. Nine protesters
were injured, including one who
was shot in the leg, said Ramon
Muchacho, mayor of one of Caracas’s
districts. None of the injuries
were life-threatening, he said. AFP
UK
Britain to help reform
Saudi economy
Britain said Wednesday it would
help Saudi Arabia to diversify its
oil-dependent economy as British
Prime Minister Theresa May visited
the Gulf kingdom. May and Saudi
King Salman would discuss “tax and
privatisation standards to help Saudi
Arabia diversify its economy and become
less reliant on oil”, a statement
released by her office said. AFP
EUROPE
EU, Greece seek bailout
deal by Friday
Greece and its international
lenders remained at odds in talks
to release fresh bailout loans to
Athens on Wednesday as Prime
Minister Alexis Tsipras said a deal
was needed this week and accused
creditors of “playing games” and
causing delays. Talks between
Greece, the EU and IMF have
stuttered for months due to differences
over Greece’s fiscal progress,
labour and energy market reforms,
rekindling worries of a new crisis
in Europe. REUTERS
AFRICA
Car bomb kills 7 at
Mogadishu restaurant
At least seven people were killed
and 10 wounded on Wednesday
when a car bomb exploded
at a restaurant near the Somali
ministry of internal security in
Mogadishu, officials said. “There
was a huge blast at a tea-shop near
the security ministry, the initial information
we are getting indicates
it was a car bomb explosion,” said
Somali police official Mohammed
Ibrahim. AFP

DT
10
Business
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
CAPITAL MARKET SNAPSHOT: WEDNESDAY
DSE Broad Index 5,756.9 -0.3% ▼ Index 1,317.2 -0.5% ▼ 30 Index 2,139.2 -0.2% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 11,148.0 13.4% ▲ Turnover in Mn Vol 301.7 23.8% ▲
CSE All Share Index 17,851.4 -0.3% ▼ 30 Index 15,970.6 -0.1% ▼ Selected Index 10,829.4 -0.3% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 647.5 -25.1% ▼ Turnover in Mn Vol 20.2 -3.1% ▼
NBR: New VAT law to launch new era
• Shariful Islam
The National Board of Revenue
said the new value-added tax law
will launch a new era in the country’s
revenue collection.
The implementation of the law
will be “logical,” he said while
speaking at a pre-budget meeting
with the Economic Reporters Forum,
a body of the country’s economic
and business journalists,
yesterday.
NBR Member (VAT Policy) Jahangir
Hossain said: “By implementing
the new VAT law, the VAT
administration under the NBR will
become a full-fledged service-oriented
body and the businesses will
also get services more easily.”
ERF President Saif Islam Dilal
said the money laundering has increased
in recent years, leading to
decline in remittance inflow to the
country.
He urged the NBR to work along
with Bangladesh Bank to prevent
money laundering through Hundi
and over and under invoicing.
ERF General Secretary Ziaur Rahman
called to impose 5-10% additional
taxes on the companies which
are not listed with stock market despite
being capable to be listed.
Summit gets Maheskhali LNG terminal work
• Asif Showkat Kallol
NBR Chairman Nojibur Rahman speaks at a pre-budget meeting with the economic journalists yesterday
Among others, NBR Member (Tax
Policy) Lutfor Rahman and former
General Secretary of Jatiya Press
Club Quamrul Islam Chowdhury
were also present at the meeting.
NBR chairman said sweets will be
offered to taxpayers at the NBR offices
across the country on the occasion
of Bangla New Year, Pahel Baishakh.
The NBR will celebrate Halkhata, a
The government has awarded Summit
Corporation Limited the job of
setting up Bangladesh’s second
floating LNG terminal to be built in
Maheshkhali Island, Cox’s Bazar.
The Energy Division proposal was
approved at the Cabinet Committee
on Public Purchase, presided over by
Finance Minister AMA Muhith.
“Summit Corporation Limited
has got the work of the construction
of second floating LNG terminal,”
Additional Secretary Mostafizur
Rahman told journalist after
the meeting yesterday.
Summit signed the deal last
month for building the liquefied natural
gas (LNG) import terminal on
the offshore Island of Maheskhali.
The terminal, which will have
floating storage and re-gasificaiton
unit (FSRU), will be set up by Summit
and Singapore-based Exelerate
Energy jointly as equity investment
partners. According to the proposal,
Summit Corporation Limited
will develop the facilities on
build-own-operate-transfer basis.
The work will have to begin
within 18 months of the signing of
the final contract. It will facilitate
supply of around 500m cubic feet
natural gas per day.
The business group, which has
got big ventures in power sector, will
transfer the facility to Petrobangla
after 15 years of operation.
Under the proposal, the government’s
petroleum agency will pay
$0.45 to Summit for re-gasification
COURTESY
Bengali tradition of opening new accounts
on the first day of Bangla New
Year, Pahela Baishakh.
Halkhata was introduced in the
era of Mughal Emperor Akbar. •
of every thousand cubic feet of natural
gas. The Power Division has
also daily tariff reduction facilities of
$2756 from re-gasification and port
charges, according to the proposal.
The sum is 2.0 US cents less than
the rate to be charged by Excelerate
Energy ($0.47) from Petrobangla
under a similar contract signed on
July 18, 2016.
Petrobangla would have to pay
Summit every day around $2,500
less the amount to be taken by the
Excelerate Energy. •
Cash incentive
plan to Dutch
ship builder
cancelled
• Asif Showkat Kallol
Finance Ministry has cancelled a
plan to give a 10% cash incentive
to Vosta LMG-Karnaphuly Joint
Venture Consortium Ltd as the firm
does not use local raw materials to
produce ships, dredgers and water
machines.
The joint venture has already
taken bond facilities from Chittagong
Bond Corporate for importing
raw materials to manufacture
ships, dredgers and vessels.
It demanded a 10% cash incentive
on export of products, according
to the finance ministry.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith
said the Vosta LMG is no longer operaying
in Bangladesh.
The National Export Policy 2015-
18 says the use of local raw materials
and foreign investments are
treated as implicit exports and direct
sale of foreign exchange is one
of the implicit exports.
Vosta LMG-Karnaphuly Joint
Venture Consortium Ltd in its website
said it is operating as an implicit
exporter in Bangladesh, according
to finance ministry.
October 2014, the Vosta LMG and
Karnaphuly delivered a total of 15
dredgers to the Bangladesh Inland
Water Transport Authority and the
Water Development Board, which
are employed to keep the Bangladesh
waterway system navigable.
The Netherlands firm Vosta
LMG is a market leader in dredging
technology, product development,
engineering and contracting, dedicated
to serving the worldwide
dredging industry.
In addition to designing and
building complete dredgers, the
company is specialised in developing
and manufacturing dredging
components. •
Bond, debenture investment limit halved
• Shariful Islam
Bangladesh Bank has lowered the
limit of investment in a single company’s
bond or debenture by half
to reduce the banks’ risky investments.
The reduced limit of investment
is 5% against current 10% from the
banks’ total amount of paid-up
capital, share premium, statutory
reserves and retained earnings.
The central bank has issued a
circular in this regard yesterday
stating, “from now, bank-companies
cannot invest in a single company’s
bond or debenture from the
total amount of paid up capital,
share premium, statutory reserve
and retained earnings.”
The circular signed by BB General
Manager Abu Farah Md Naser
also said: “Bangladesh Securities
and Exchange Commission will
have to approve the bond or debenture
investment.”
But the sub-debt instrument of
the banks and companies will not
be under the circular.
Previously, the investment of
limit was fixed at 10%, as per section
26 (ka) of Bank Company Act
(Amendment) 2013.
Recently, Finance Division
rejected the proposal of issuing
bonds worth Tk4,100 crore for
three state-run banks including
BASIC Bank to meet their capital
shortfalls. •

Business 11
DT
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
Asian markets cautiously higher ahead of Xi-Trump summit
• AFP, Hong Kong
Asia’s markets mostly rose yesterday
but investors moved nervously
ahead of a summit between Chinese
President Xi Jinping and Donald
Trump this week.
The two-day gathering in Florida
comes after the US tycoon has hit
out at Beijing’s trade policies and
labelled it a currency manipulator,
fanning fears of a trade war between
the world’s top two economies.
There are also geopolitical
concerns linked to North Korea’s
growing nuclear programme, with
Trump warning he would be prepared
to sideline Beijing in dealing
with the rogue state.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-
Un raised tensions Wednesday by
firing another ballistic missile into
the Sea of Japan, the latest in a series
of launches in recent months.
Also in focus is the release of US
jobs figures Friday, which will provide
a fresh snapshot of the state of
the world’s top economy, as well as
minutes from the Federal Reserve’s
March policy meeting. A private US
jobs reading is due later Wednesday.
“It seems most folks are waiting
on the meeting between Presidents
Xi and Trump. And of course, nonfarm
payrolls,” said Greg McKenna,
chief market strategist at AxiTrader.
Hong Kong jumped 0.6% while
Shanghai rallied 1.5% as investors
welcomed a decision to set up a
new economic development zone
near Beijing.
The news boosted property and
construction stocks as it sparked a
frenzy among out-of-town home
buyers. •
Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed visits the Walton stall at the Inter-
Parliamentary Union event in Dhaka this week
Walton products praised
in IPU event
• Tribune Business Desk
Radisson Blu Chittagong
makes Baishakh offers
• Tribune Business Desk
Radisson Blu Chittagong
Bay View has announced
Baishakhi offers on the occasion
of Bangla New Year.
The offers styled as
“Boishakhi Jatra” and “Bengali
Mohavoj” will be available
on April 13-23, said the hotel
authorities at a press conference
Wednesday.
“It’s really a great pleasure
for us to participate in the festival
of Bangla New Year,” said
Robin Edwards, General Manager
of Chittagong Radisson.
Under the “Boishakhi
Local electronics brand Walton
showcased a wide range of
products with the theme “Made
in Bangladesh” at the Inter-Parliamentary
Union assembly at
Bangabandhu International
Conference Centre in Dhaka,
said the local election brand.
It displayed products like refrigerators,
LED TV, air conditioners,
electric switch-sockets
and various LED lights. Walton
said it was highly praised by
foreign delegates who attended
the event this week.
Bangladesh National Parliament,
Ministry of Commerce
and Export Promotion
Bureau organised the exhibition
of exportable goods. It
also demonstrated development
activities of the government
to the foreign delegates.
IPU members praised Walton
for its high standards
products, perfect finishing
and magnificent designs.
The foreign delegates were
overwhelmed by knowing
about the role of Walton in
expanding the country’s technology-based
products industry,
creating nearly 32,000
employments..
Md Humayun Kabir, Executive
Director (PR and Media)
of Walton Group, said Walton
products drew the eyes of the
foreign delegates from the
first day of the fair. •
Jatra” package, a couple will
be able to celebrate the Pahela
Baishakh staying one night
at the hotel along with chef’s
special complimentary cake,
sumptuous evening pizza with
mocktails and delicious buffet
dinner or lunch at Tk1,420.
“Boishakhi Jatra” offer will
cover the Bengali Mohavoj in
which the customers will be
able to taste authentic Bengali
cuisine buffet on Pahel
Baishakh at Tk2,222+ per person.
This will be free for children
up to six years old and
50% off for the children aged
between 7 and 12 years. •

DT
12
Editorial
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
TODAY
They’ll be
watching you
Banning Facebook and policing book fairs
are the most luminous examples. Once
you get to the Digital Security Act 2016, it
stops getting even remotely funny
PAGE 15
The aid system
isn’t working
Feeding those in need is the immediate,
short-term priority. But making sure that
those who caused the situation are held
accountable for it is equally important as
a longer-term priority
PAGE 14
On the right track
BIGSTOCK
Why Pakistan
stayed away
My experience in Pakistan says the
majority now know the true history
of 1971, thanks to the internet, and
Islamabad should respect the voice of its
own people
PAGE 13
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Better rail connectivity with India, Nepal, and Bhutan
spells good things for Bangladesh.
It is, then, good to see the Bangladesh government
all set to re-open the transborder rail routes to those
neighbouring countries, in an effort to boost trade and tourism.
But it is not enough to just improve the rail links -- it
remains a challenge to ease up immigration rules to enable
hassle-free travel between our countries.
If we can manage to do that, the economic benefits to
Bangladesh would be considerable.
Improved rail links will not only stimulate trade, but
increased contact between peoples in the region will contribute
to a positive exchange in ideas and knowledge spillovers,
thereby easing business and improving bilateral relations.
Better connectivity within and beyond South Asia
is imperative to Bangladesh meeting its own long-term
development goals.
We can all learn from the European Union’s example --
Europe has sustained economic growth and a high standard of
living through better transport links and the removal of visa
barriers.
Bangladesh should aspire to similar possibilities.
Right now, many Bangladeshi products such as ceramics and
jute are popular in India, but trade is slowed down because of
the inefficient immigration process, and this must be changed.
As we move into the future, considerations should also be
made for environmental sustainability, and for speed.
Ultimately, freight trains are cheaper than road or maritime
transport.
Restoring rail connectivity with India, Nepal, and Bhutan
through rail links will help Bangladesh achieve great things --
as long as we stay on track.
Better connectivity
within and beyond
South Asia is imperative
to Bangladesh meeting
its own long term
development goals

Opinion 13
DT
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
They’ll be
watching you
Is it the government’s job to act like a
parent?
• Fardin Hasin
Iain Mcleod was not the
most memorable of British
conservatives being credited
with the rapid collapse of
Britain’s African empire while
serving as secretary of state for the
colonies (a now-defunct ministry).
This didn’t really matter to Iain.
He understood that imperialism
was over, and any attempt to hold
on to it would only damage Great
Britain.
History proved him right.
But my point is neither about
the politician-journalist nor
about decolonisation. It’s about
something he wrote in late 1965
while serving as the editor of The
Spectator (a British conservative
magazine) about a government
that intrudes into the privacy of
ordinary citizens through invasive
means and enacts draconian
solutions to run-of-the-mill
problems.
More specifically, Iain was
talking about the plans to restrict
the speed limit to 112km/h.
While we Bangladeshis have
seen enough deaths on roads to
desire such measures, Iain, being
the citizen of a more systematic
country, found them “illogical,
patronising, and paternalistic.”
To him, it seemed a path only the
“nanny state” (a state which views
its citizens “inherently incapable”
of driving at 130km/h) would take.
What other things would the
nanny state do?
Flood the cell phones of its
citizens with messages one after
another about how all boilers
should be run by expert and legal
(read: “licensed”) boiler operators,
or that sustainable development
is only possible if we are always
prepared for (natural) disasters,
undertake various awareness
campaigns over issues that the
public ought to understand quite
well by now (if the masses still
don’t realise why killing infant
hilsha fish is a bad thing, I fear
they never will).
On a side note, the police
helpline initiative sounds quite
good actually; and so do the
messages about how child
marriage must be prevented at any
cost.
The rest of it is still
irremediable. It’s been about time
-- if the public hasn’t learned yet,
let it go. Wait, don’t let it go, just
enact the existing laws. Is that too
much to ask?
Seems like, in Bangladesh, it
is. Someone somewhere up the
ladder thinks it’s a brilliant idea to
send messages.
That a privileged Dhaka city
teenager has nothing whatsoever
to do with infant hilsha fish and
that a pharmacy store-owner in
a distant Rangpur haat bazaar
doesn’t really care about jute
seems to be lost in transition.
Some of the people who do
catch infant hilsha fish and drive
recklessly don’t even know how to
read cell phone messages. A few
of them don’t even own mobile
phones.
But who cares about results.
People are indeed becoming
aware, not all of them but some,
over and over again, and again,
and again, and again.
Then there’s the question of
nationalised culture and religion.
Banning Facebook
and policing book
fairs are the most
luminous examples.
Once you get to the
Digital Security Act
2016, it stops getting
even remotely funny
State-regulated khutbas and
mongol shovajatras (good thing the
former was cancelled).
It seems as though past
failures of command economy
and command politics have been
forgotten and now we have its
replacements with command
culture and command religion.
This point requires deep analysis
on its own right.
And that’s just the tip of the
iceberg. You dig a bit deeper and a
newer set of draconian measures
come into our view. Banning
Facebook and policing book fairs
are the most luminous examples,
Internet time is a private matter
and then there was the rumour
going on that list of visitors of porn
sites will be publicly disclosed.
Once you get to the Digital
Security Act 2016, it stops getting
even remotely funny. Phrases
like “subject to any reasonable
restrictions” raise many questions,
namely as to whose reason it
would be and what would be the
extent of such restrictions.
The government has
intentionally left it all very
ambiguous. Except the clause
which allows the Directorate
General of the Digital Security
Agency (agencies that China and
North Korea have too) to bypass
court orders. That part is crystal
clear.
Now, this sort of legislation is
derived both out of a morbid and
often violent desire to control
and direct the population, and
an innate but equally destructive
belief that the public does not
possess the necessary wisdom to
survive out in the tough world.
And it also needs controlled
democracy, which allows them
freedom over a certain spectrum.
Anyone and everyone who
disagrees is an enemy of the state,
and must be crushed at any cost.
A wide variety of leaders
across the spectrum ascribed to
this ideology. Some of them were
revolutionaries (Fidel Castro),
others were nationalists (Mahathir
Mohammad or Lee Kuan Yew), and
a considerable bunch represented
the military junta (General Ziaul
Haq or Augusto Pinochet). A few
countries did achieve considerable
development this way.
At the cost of a suppressed
democracy, that is.
Yes, Malaysia has developed at
an amazing rate, but we should
keep in mind that Anwar Ibrahim,
the Malaysian politician and leader
of the opposition party, is still in
jail.
The case of Singapore is even
better, except for the people who
opposed Lee Kuan Yew and were
sued into oblivion using taxpayer
money.
The two countries are still
examples of progress. But they
are also examples of suppressed
democracy. There are states in the
world which have taken a lot more
time to achieve the same things,
but have done so without sending
the opposition to jail on absurd
charges.
Bottom line: Economic
development shouldn’t come
at the expense of civil rights.
There’s a reason they call it
sustainable development. Josip
Tito’s Yugoslavia seemed to have
it all going well, but it all collapsed
BIGSTOCK
within a few years of his death.
But the case of Bangladesh
is even more complex, it’s not
just economic development that
the government is promising,
but also security against the real
threat of terrorism. While we keep
hearing about how bad the threat
is, we are seldom told the cost of
this protection. We are not told
because we wouldn’t understand,
because somebody somewhere
prioritises our safety over our
choices, without understanding
either.
One only needs to remember
the Rampal issue and subtle
comments from government
officials implying that the public
was misunderstanding the
environmental question -- to
understand that the public will
forever be considered as naïve,
ignorant, and uninformed, and
the government will forever be the
parent, the leader, the decider.
Struck between its inability
to be politically aroused and an
inability of the political opposition
to provide the least amount
of stimulus, the Bangladeshi
masses will, for the unforeseeable
future, play obedient children to
unreasonably stern parents. That
is to say, they will suffer. •
Fardin Hasin is a freelance contributor.

14
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Opinion
The aid system isn’t working
Humanitarian aid should not bail out those who caused the famine in the first place
• Azeem Ibrahim
After much encouraging
news coming out of
Africa in the last decade
on the development
front, the continent is back in the
spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
Stephen O’Brien, the UN undersecretary-general
for humanitarian
affairs, has warned that as many as
20 million face famine in Africa, in
South Sudan, Somalia, Nigeria, as
well as nearby Yemen -- the worst
humanitarian crisis the UN has
faced since its foundation in 1945.
To be clear, famine is not the
same thing as starvation. Famine
is a technical term employed by
the UN.
It is declared when 20% of
a population have no access to
food or don’t know where they
will get their next meal from,
when 30% of children under five
in that population are severely
malnourished, and when you have
mortality rates of over two per
10,000 per day, as a consequence.
Put another way, to say that 20
million face famine is to say that
we already have 4,000 people
dying of hunger every day. And
the total amount of aid required to
“avert a catastrophe” would run to
$4.4 billion by July.
What makes the situation
particularly galling is that
this situation is primarily a
consequence of war.
But in Africa itself, the conflicts
which fuel the situations in South
Sudan, Somalia, and Nigeria are
internal, and the result of decades
of poor management and neglect,
and an entrenched culture of
corruption.
Nevertheless, we in the
international community are left
to pick up the tab. And of course
we will. We must. We cannot allow
so many people, usually the most
innocent and vulnerable in those
countries, to suffer for the follies
of their overlords, or of foreign
powers.
But, it is also unreasonable
that these countries and their
leaders expect us to step in and
bail them out, while many of the
very same leaders continue to
reign over organised systems of
corruption, happily plunder the
wealth of their countries, and fight
any civil society efforts to improve
governance, and hold them
accountable for their actions.
Make no mistake. What we
have here are some of the richest
countries in the world in terms of
natural resources, which are being
wrecked because of corruption
and incompetence.
On the verge of catastrophe?
Feeding those in need is the immediate, short-term priority. But making
sure that those who caused the situation are held accountable for it is
equally important as a longer-term priority
Immediate priority
That is why we must make sure
that the humanitarian aid we
provide is a bail-out for those
suffering from starvation, but not
also a bail-out for those who have
caused these problems in the first
place.
Feeding those in need is the
immediate, short-term priority.
But making sure that those
who caused the situation are
held accountable for it is equally
important as a longer-term
priority if we are going to reduce
the recurrence of these problems
in the future. The first and most
obvious thing to do is for the
international community to
focus their aid budgets more on
promoting good governance and
tackling corruption. Tony Blair’s
Africa Governance Initiative is a
good model on how to approach
this issue.
But we can and should go
much further than that. Take,
for example, the money spirited
away in secretive bank accounts
in the West by these leaders. We
already have national and global
anti-corruption and anti-moneylaundering
powers to investigate
accounts linked to criminal
activity.
There is no reason why we
could not expand those powers
to recoup, form the accounts of
the relevant leaders, the cost of
feeding the starving. It makes
moral, financial, and political
sense to invoice and forcefully
debit the accounts of past and
present corrupt Nigerian leaders to
feed Nigerians.
Just as it makes sense to invoice
South Sudanese accounts linked
to the state to feed the opposition
they are fighting. What is broken
about the current model of
international aid is the lack of
accountability.
The poor and vulnerable suffer,
Western people and governments
bear the financial costs for
alleviating that suffering, and the
perpetrators get to laugh all the
way to the bank. The way to make
international aid work is to make
the perpetrators accountable.
First of all, target the systems
which allow them to plunder their
countries as they so often do, and
secondly, in all events serve them
directly, as individuals, the bill for
the consequences of their choices
and actions. •
Azeem Ibrahim is Senior Fellow at
the Centre for Global Policy and Adj
Research Professor at the Strategic
Studies Institute, US Army War College.
He tweets @AzeemIbrahim. This article
previously appeared in Al-Arabiya News.
REUTERS

Opinion 15
Why Pakistan stayed away
Bangladesh is still waiting for Pakistan to show some respect
DT
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
Pakistan was not missed
• Nadeem Qadir
The 136th Inter-
Parliamentary Union
(IPU) assembly has just
taken place in Dhaka amid
fanfare and congregation of top
parliamentarians, despite a last
minute abstention by Pakistan
citing “hostile environment” in
Bangladesh.
Pakistan has made a blunder as
it is the only country that stayed
away, and has made the situation
more hostile vis-a-vis Dhaka-
Islamabad ties.
It does not take a genius to
understand that it was Pakistan’s
tit-for-tat for Bangladesh as it
did not join the Saarc summit in
Islamabad.
Also, it wanted to jeopardise
the mega conference by pulling
out at the last moment. The world
did not pay any heed to them and
has joined the conference, a major
achievement for Bangladesh.
The militant attacks just before
the conference may also be linked
to pro-Pakistani elements or that
country’s agents to scare the
participants.
I am glad that the world has
realised that whatever “hostile”
situation Pakistan wanted to point
out was rational for Bangladesh,
and a bilateral matter. The Saarc
summit was a different matter, as
many other countries pulled out
as well.
I am also glad that the world
community has understood that
terrorism is not a single-country
affair, but a global issue, and
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s
“zero telerance” is proven and
her government has been able to
provide fool-proof security.
“Terrorism and militancy are
trans-national problems. We all
will have to face the challenge
collectively,” Hasina told delegates
at her five-day conference being
held at Bangladesh’s heart
of democracy, the National
Parliament House.
A total of 1,348 delegates
-- including 650 parliament
members, 53 speakers, deputy
speakers, and 209 women
parliamentarians of 131 countries
-- are attending the mega event.
Dhaka has not lost anything,
but gained more as the world
community agrees that the
interference of Islamabad in
Bangladesh’s internal affairs had
crossed all limits.
Every time a 1971 war criminal
is executed, Islamabad went
as far as taking the issue to its
parliament.
It has only given more merit
to the issue of war criminals and
the genocide they carried out
in 1971. Pakistan’s actions have
proven that those who have been
executed were indeed “important,
celebrity collaborators” of the
Pakistani army.
My experience in Pakistan says the majority now know the true history
of 1971, thanks to the internet, and Islamabad should respect the voice
of its own people
The visit to the National Martyrs’
memorial or the Bangabandhu
Museum may have been another
reason for Pakistan to stay away.
Even though former president
Parvez Musharraf had laid wreaths
at the Savar memorial and had
“regretted” the “incidents”
of 1971, the military and top
politicians felt embarrassed.
And going to our founding
father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s
DHAKA TRIBUNE
residence, where their compatriots
killed him in 1975, was possibly an
important factor too.
I have written before that
Pakistan can fix the tension if its
leadership listens to its general
people, who want them to seek
forgiveness for their crimes
against humanity in 1971, and stop
patronising anti-liberation forces
like Jamaat-e-Islami and pro-
Pakistani political elements.
You kill my people, you kill my
father, you kill my mother, kill
my brother, and rape my sisters,
just because they were Bengalis
and wanted an independent
Bangladesh.
A lot has happened, and
without repentance, you cannot
ever have anything but a “hostile”
environment.
My experience in Pakistan
says the majority now know the
true history of 1971, thanks to the
internet, and Islamabad should
respect the voice of its own
people. •
Nadeem Qadir is the Press Minister
of Bangladesh High Commission in
London.

16
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Downtime
CROSSWORD
ACROSS
DOWN
1 Fashions (5)
1 Derided (6)
4 Members of a play (4) 2 Revise and correct (4)
7 Easily managed (6) 3 Alone (4)
8 Polite (5)
4 Drink (5)
10 Expensive (4) 5 Beer (3)
11 Make up for (5) 6 Spiritualists' meeting (6)
12 Printers' measures (3) 9 Very extensive (4)
14 Starchy food (4) 13 Incentive (6)
17 Morse elements (4) 15 Notion (4)
19 Lair (3)
16 Make beloved (6)
20 Commonplace (5) 18 Not flighty (5)
23 Capital of Peru (4) 21 Frozen treats (4)
25 Stop (5)
22 Examine (4)
26 Modes of utterance (6) 24 Extinct bird (3)
27 Heavy substance (4)
28 Bullock (5)
CODE-CRACKER
How to solve: Each number in our
CODE-CRACKER grid represents a
different letter of the alphabet. For
example, today 11 represents R so fill R
every time the figure 11 appears.
You have two letters in the control
grid to start you off. Enter them in the
appropriate squares in the main grid, then
use your knowledge of words to work out
which letters go in the missing squares.
Some letters of the alphabet may not be
used.
As you get the letters, fill in the other
squares with the same number in the
main grid, and the control grid. Check
off the list of alphabetical letters as you
identify them.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
CALVIN AND HOBBES
SUDOKU
How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the
numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must
contain all nine digits with no number repeating.
PEANUTS
YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS
CODE-CRACKER
CROSSWORD
DILBERT
SUDOKU

What’s on
17
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
EVENTS AROUND TOWN TODAY
THEATRE
MOVIE
EXHIBITION
STAR CINEPLEX
Where Bashundhara City, Dhaka
What Movie showtime (April 6)
GOHONJATRA
When 7-8:30pm
Where Experimental Theatre, Bangladesh Shilpakala
Academy, Dhaka.
What A Padatik Nattya Sangsad production.
PORSHI BOSHOT KORE
When 7:15-9:15pm
Where National Theatre Hall, Bangladesh Shilpakala
Academy, Dhaka
What A Prachyanat production.
CONCERT
Beauty and the Beast (3D):
10:50am, 1:40pm, 4:30pm and
7:20pm
Power Rangers (2D): 2pm and
7:30pm
Kong: Skull Island (3D): 11:30am,
2:10pm, 4:10pm and 6:50pm
Bhubon Majhi (2D): 1:30pm and
6:40pm
Sultana Bibiana (2D): 11am and
4pm
Hotath Dekha (2D): 11:10am and
4:50pm
The Boss Baby (3D): 11:20am,
1:50pm, 4:40pm and 7pm
Logan (2D): 10:50am, 1:40pm,
4:30pm and 7:20pm
BLOCKBUSTER CINEMAS
Where Jamuna Future Park, Dhaka
What Movie showtime (April 6)
EXHIBITION 2017
When 10am-8pm
Where Gallery Chitrak, House 4, Road 6, Dhanmondi, Dhaka
What A group art exhibition, open till April 20.
FACE-TO-FACE
When 5-8pm
Where Alliance Française de Dhaka, 26 Mirpur Rd, Dhaka
What A solo art exhibition by Moon Rahman.
FESTIVAL
DIPLO LIVE IN DHAKA
When 6-11:59pm
Where Le Méridien Dhaka, 79/A Commercial Area, Airport
Road, Nikunja 2, Khilkhet, Dhaka
What Diplo will be performing live in Dhaka. For tickets,
visit: diploindhaka.com/
FASHION FESTIVAL 2017
When 10am-8pm
Where Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Dhaka
What Organised by the Fashion Entrepreneurs Association of
Bangladesh, and will feature the newest collection by Tangail
Shari Kutir, Kay Craft, Rong Bangladesh, Banglar Mela,
Deshal, etc.
WORKSHOP
ELEMENTS- A
STORYTELLING
WORKSHOP WITH
CLAY
When 11am-1pm
Where Clay Station Dhaka, House 28, Road 20, Block K,
Banani
What A workshop using stories and pottery, catered towards
children between 9 to 11 years old.
Rings: 2:50pm
Beauty and the Beast (3D): 11:35am,
2:15pm, 5pm and 7:30pm
La la land: 4:50pm
The Shack (2D): 12:10pm and
7:35pm
Nuru Mia O Tar Beauty Driver (2D):
11:45am and 4:50pm
Kong: Skull Island (3D): 4:55pm
Bhuban Majhi (2D): 2:25pm and
7:30pm
Logan (2D): 1130am, 2:15pm and
7:30pm
Power Rangers (2D): 11:40am,
2:15pm, 5pm and 7:40pm
Hothat Dekha (2D): 12pm, 2:25pm,
4:50pm and 7:10pm
MUSIC
JATRA BIROTI LIVE
PERFORMANCES
When 7-11pm
Where Jatra Biroti, 60 Kemal
Ataturk Avenue, Dhaka
What Live performance by
Shorif Sadhu.

DT
18
Sports
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
‘T20I retirement was Mashrafe’s decision’
Shakib most likely candidate for T20I captaincy, says BCB boss
• Ali Shahriyar Amin
from Colombo
Bangladesh’s Mashrafe bin Mortaza bowls during training in Sri Lanka recently
MASHRAFE'S
T20I CAREER
M Runs Ave Wkts Ave
53 377 13.96 41 36.51
t Made his T20I debut against
Zimbabwe in Khulna on November
28, 2006.
t Announced his decision to
retire from T20Is on Tuesday,
moments before the start of the
first of two matches against Sri
Lanka at R Premadasa Stadium.
t Will make his last T20I appearance
against the Lankans in
Colombo today.
AFP
BCB president Nazmul Hasan said it was limited-over captain
Mashrafe bin Mortaza’s decision to retire from T20Is.
The BCB chief informed that Mashrafe can play ODIs as
long as he is fit and that there is no chance of dropping him in
the 50-over format.
“Mashrafe is not just a player who can be considered only
for his performances with bat and ball. He is beyond that. He
has something more special. It is impossible to find another
Mashrafe. Be it his leadership quality or enormous contributions
for the country or dedication; he is very much rare,”
Nazmul told the media at Hotel Taj Samudra in Colombo yesterday.
“He is from another level. We will miss him. We might find
a good player in future but finding Mashrafe’s replacement
will be very tough,” he said.
The BCB boss said they are planning to build a new team
ahead of the next World T20.
“Mashrafe would not have made it to the next World T20,
so we would have needed a new captain anyway. He would
have been unlikely to play for more than 18 months. We wanted
separate captains for three formats. We preferably wanted
three separate teams with at least four-five specialist players
in each format,” he said.
“In a meeting a couple of nights ago, I told the coach (Chandika
Hathurusingha) not to disturb the team. I told him to
make a parallel team with rising players like [Nazmul Hossain]
Shanto, Afif [Hossain], Azmir [Ahmed] and [Mohammad] Saifuddin,
and then coach them. Later, we will get them ready
in two years. He said he is ready to do so but there is no break
of even 15 days in the next two years. But we did find some
players like Mustafizur [Rahman], [Mehedi Hasan] Miraz and
[Mosaddek Hossain] Saikat in that process, so this was our basic
plan – to find new talent.
“I told this to Mashrafe. He has always said this would be
his last T20I series as captain, but he wouldn’t be left out of
the squad. I met Shakib [al Hasan], Mashrafe, Tamim [Iqbal]
and Mushfiqur [Rahim] and told them they have to decide
themselves what they want to do, rather than us telling them.
Because these players have contributed so much for the team
and the country. But Mashrafe didn’t tell us about his retirement
at that time. The declaration of his retirement was his
decision, but we didn’t know about it.
“I don’t know why he said he has retired, but as far as the
discussion we have had, he is in the squad. He would just
leave captaincy. He bowled exceedingly well in [Tuesday's]
game, didn’t he? If he is in form and fit, who will leave him?
It is a different issue if he doesn’t want to play. There’s no way
we told him to go,” he added.
The BCB supremo stated that there is no chance of changing
ODI captaincy since Mashrafe will be allowed to play as
long as fitness permits him.
“There is no chance of changing ODI captaincy. A year
ago, we thought that the [2017] Champions trophy will be
Mashrafe's last tournament. But we think he could play more
than that series. He will play as long as he remains fit. There is
no chance of dropping him from ODI squad. When he retires
from ODIs, we will hope that he will be in BCB as well. That’s
our wish,” he said.
The BCB president said all-rounder Shakib is the most likely
candidate for the post of the next T20I skipper.
“If Mashrafe had suddenly said he wouldn’t be able to play
the second T20I, we would have gone to Shakib for captaincy.
It would be the automatic choice. Shakib is the most likely
candidate. We always had five candidates and since Mashrafe
and Mushfiqur are already captains, we only had Tamim,
Mahmudullah and Shakib as the remaining ones. Shakib’s
mental attitude and performance show that he has matured,
and is a full grown-up. He is ahead of other candidates,” he
added. •

Sports 19
DT
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
Tigers eager to give
Mashrafe perfect farewell
• Ali Shahriyar Amin
from Colombo
Bangladesh will play their second
and final T20I against host Sri Lanka
today at R Premadasa Stadium
in Colombo, looking to end their
tour on a winning note.
More importantly however, the
Tigers will be desperate to give departing
T20I skipper Mashrafe bin
Mortaza the perfect send-off.
Emotions are running high in
the Bangladesh camp after charismatic
captain Mashrafe decided
to call it a day as far as the shortest
format of the game is concerned.
And it was no different for
youngster Mosaddek Hossain who
said they are extremely motivated
to give Mashrafe the farewell that
he deserves.
“There is no alternative to winning
now. But I can personally say
we will play the second match for
Mashrafe bhai, to gift him a winning
send-off,” Mosaddek told the
media yesterday.
Mosaddek, who scored an unbeaten
34 in the first T20I, admitted
that they were 20 runs short
against the Lankans in the series
opener on Tuesday.
“T20I is different from the ODI
format. Players have to me more
aggressive in T20Is. I think we were
20 runs short in the first T20I. If we
had scored 20 more runs then the
scenario of the match could have
been different,” he said.
“I think our batsmen are batting
well at the moment. Everybody is
in good touch. So if the batsmen
can perform more clinically then
we can achieve a positive result in
the second and final T20I. It has
been a good series so far for me as
a batsman. I would like to perform
well [today] to contribute for a
team win. We would like to end the
series on a high,” he added.
Bangladesh are likely to play the
same playing XI but it was learnt
that off-spinner Mehedi Hasan
Miraz might debut today. The decision
however, will very much
depend on the nature of the pitch
and the final decision will only be
taken hours before the match gets
underway.
In contrast, the Lankans are in
high spirit at the moment. They
have turned around after their
first ODI defeat against the Tigers
in Dambulla, producing a clinical
performance in the first T20I. The
returns of Lasith Malinga, one of
the best cricketers in the shortest
format, and the experienced Nuwan
Kulasekara have boosted their
bowling.
To add to that, they have plenty
of big-hitters in the squad to turn
the match their way in the blink of
an eye.
Both teams rested yesterday
and did not train.
Generally, batting first at the
venue is a good choice for the team
who win the toss. There is a chance
of light shower in the evening.
Sri Lanka have a good T20I record
recently as they have won
four of their last five matches while
it makes for grim viewing for Bangladesh,
who have lost all of their
last eight T20Is. •
TOP THREE TIGERS BATSMEN IN ODIs
Player Position Rating Points
Tamim Iqbal 19th 633
Mushfiqur Rahim 22nd 629
Shakib al Hasan 26th 601
TOP THREE TIGERS BOWLERS IN ODIs
Player Position Rating Points
Shakib 8th 627
Mashrafe bin Mortaza 12th 612
Mustafizur Rahman 30th 540
TOP THREE ALL-ROUNDERS IN ODIs
Player Position Rating Points
Shakib 1st 376
Mohammad Nabi 2nd 330
Mohammad Hafeez 3rd 312
Tamim jumps four
places to 19th
• Tribune Report
Tamim Iqbal has jumped to career-best
19th position in the ODI
batsmen's ranking. The left-hander
smashed his eighth hundred in the
first ODI against Sri Lanka. Tamim
was previously 23rd.
Shakib al Hasan stayed firmly at
the top of the all-rounders' ranking
with 376 rating points, 46 ahead
of Afghanistan cricketer Mohammad
Nabi. Shakib also moved up
five places and is now ranked 26th
in the ODI batsmen's ranking with
601 rating points while Mushfiqur
Rahim is still 22nd.
Fast bowler Taskin Ahmed,
who picked up his maiden hattrick,
against the Lankans in the
first ODI, rocketed 13 places to a
career-best 61st place with 448 rating
points. Shakib is ranked eighth
with 627 rating points while skipper
Mashrafe bin Mortaza sits at
12th in the ODI bowlers' ranking. •
ROBI SPINNER HUNT COMPETITION
Unorthodox spinners in focus ahead of final phase
• Tribune Report
The Robi spinner hunt competition
has entered its third and final
phase following a gruelling screening
process.
A total of 50 male, five female
and as many differently-abled
spinners were chosen from all
across the country for the five-day
long residential camp to be held in
Mirpur's Sher-e-Bangla National
Stadium, starting today.
A press conference was held at
SBNS yesterday where the organisers
announced the details of the
campaign and its possible outcome.
BCB vice president and chairman
of the High Performance committee,
Mahbub Anam informed that
they are satisfied with the response
and are happy with the skill level exhibited
by the spinners ahead of the
final phase of the competition.
“Besides orthodox right- and
left-arm spinners, we have got
some fantastic unorthodox spinners
too. There are leg-spinners
and chinamen bowlers too who I
think will be wonderful addition to
our cricket. Till date, Bangladesh
are yet to see a chinaman bowler
in mainstream cricket,” Anam told
the media yesterday.
“The best part of the campaign
is that we have been able to reach
out for spinners across the 64 districts
of the country. This has revitalised
our cricket in the grass-root
BCB vice president Mahbub Anam addresses the media yesterday in Mirpur’s SBNS
level. We are confident that at the
end of this competition, we will be
able to present a group of potential
spinning options for our male and
female teams,” he said.
Bangladesh tasted a lot of success
in recent times largely owing
to their spinners. There was a time
not so long ago in the country’s
cricket when the left-arm spinners
ruled both the domestic and international
scene.
However, the same cannot be
said of the unorthodox spinners.
Not only in the national team but in
domestic cricket as well, the teams
DHAKA TRIBUNE
are defensive and often overlook
the leg-spinners, given that they
might prove to be expensive on
a day. The final pahse of the spin
hunt has 18 leg-spinners and five
chinaman.
When queried if such thinking
can mar the effort of the spinners
who will emerge from the competition,
Anam said, “I totally agree
to that. We have always been defensive
towards the leg-spinners.
The unorthodox spinners can be
expensive giving away runs for
which we often overlook them. I
believe this has come from our defensive
mentality. But I hope it will
change soon and that the teams
start thinking attacking.”
The first phase of the competition
was held in 64 districts in association
with the District Sports
Associations of the respective districts.
At the end of the first phase,
928 male and 72 female spinners
were selected.
All the selected athletes then
took part in the second phase of the
campaign held in 10 divisional level
cities. The spinners who were selected
for the second phase will join the
final phase of the competition. •
Fate of Pakistan
proposal
depends on
BCB meeting
• Tribune Report
The BCB can only come to a decision
of sending its High Performance
team to tour Pakistan
through a board meeting. The BCB
vice president Mahbub Anam informed
this to the media yesterday.
The PCB chairman Shaharyar
Khan, following a meeting with
the BCB president Nazmul Hasan
in Colombo last week, said to the
media that the latter has agreed to
send its HP team to Pakistan.
The PCB chief also added that
they agreed to go ahead with the
planned visit, which is to send
the Pakistan national side to tour
Bangladesh in July-August this
year, only after the BCB agrees to
send its HP team to tour Pakistan.
“Our president (Nazmul) clearly
stated that we will discuss it in
our board meeting before taking
any decision on sending the team
to Pakistan,” Anam told the media
in Mirpur's Sher-e-Bangla National
Stadium yesterday.
A BCB meeting is likely to take
place this month. International
cricket in Pakistan fell in jeopardy
since the militant attack on Sri Lanka
in Lahore in 2009 which left eight
dead. Since the incident, Pakistan
has become a no-go zone for all the
international cricket teams. •

20
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Chapeco take
Supercup lead
• Reuters, Sao Paulo
Chapecoense beat Atletico Nacional
2-1 in the first leg of their South
American Supercup final on Tuesday
as the game was marked by
memorials to those killed in an air
crash before the teams' scheduled
Copa Sudamericana final last November.
The match was the first
between the sides since all but
three of the Brazilian team and
their staff perished as their plane
crashed on approach to Medellin
last year. Only six of the 77 on
board survived the crash.
Organisers laid on pre-match
shows and post-match fireworks
for Tuesday's clash, which was
billed as “The Gratitude Game”.
Fans also launched one minute's
applause in the 71st minute of the
game to commemorate those who
died.
The home fans, eager to repay
the support given to their players
and staff in Colombia immediately
after the accident, also applauded
the visitors' goal, a stunning 25-
yard equaliser from Macnelly Torres
in the second half. •
Sports
Fireworks explode over the field prior to the South America Super Cup first leg match between Brazil’s Chapecoense and Colombia’s Atletico Nacional at Arena Conda
Stadium in Chapeco, Brazil on Tuesday
REUTERS
Atletico earn fifth straight
win by beating Sociedad
• Reuters, Madrid
LA LIGA
Athletic Bilbao 2-0 Espanyol
Aduriz 16, 37
Atletico Madrid 1-0 Real Sociedad
Luis 28
Real Betis 0-1 Villarreal
Adrian Lopez 47
Filipe Luis scored as Atletico Madrid
beat Real Sociedad 1-0 to rack
up a fifth straight win in La Liga
and provisionally consolidate third
place in the standings.
Luis had failed to score in his previous
25 league outings this campaign
but followed his strike in Saturday's
win at Malaga by smashing
in the only goal against Real Sociedad
in the 28th minute. Fernando
Torres missed a glorious opportunity
to double the lead before the
break, hitting the post while goalkeeper
Geronimo Rulli was stranded
on the floor, and Angel Correa
also wasted a clear opening. •
Rory to think
twice about
Trump again
• Reuters, Augusta
Rory McIlroy received plenty of
criticism for golfing with US President
Donald Trump this year and
the Northern Irishman said he
would "think twice" before accepting
a second invite. McIlroy, who
will launch his bid to complete the
grand slam of golf's four majors at
this week's US Masters, has said
playing with Trump was not to be
confused with an endorsement. •
Manchester United’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic scores their first goal from the penalty spot against Everton during their Premier
League match at Old Trafford on Tuesday
REUTERS
Kohli wins Wisden honour
• Reuters, New Delhi
Ibra back as a lion
among pussycats
• Reuters
In a TV interview before Tuesday's
match between Manchester United
and Everton, Zlatan Ibrahimovic
had been asked if he was the best
striker in the Premier League.
"Lions don't compare to humans,"
he smiled to his BT Sport
questioner in quite perfect Zlatan
fashion, suggesting that the very
idea there could be a better marksman
than him out there was laughable.
Then as if it to prove his point,
he picked up where he left off before
a three-match suspension,
scoring the goal in the 93rd minute
that once again bailed out United,
India captain Virat Kohli has been
named the "Leading Cricketer in
the World" in this year's edition of
the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack,
the publication announced.
Pakistan Test captain Misbahul-Haq
and senior batsman Younis
Khan were among the five "Cricketers
of the Year", a group which also
includes the English trio of Ben
Duckett, Chris Woakes and Toby
Roland-Jones.
The five players cannot have
been chosen before and the emphasis
remains on the English summer.
Australia's Ellyse Perry was
named the world's leading women's
cricketer.
Barring the just-concluded
home series against Australia,
Kohli had a fairytale year in which
the batsman averaged more than
anyone in all three formats, while
his team lost only once in their 13-
Test home season.
Kohli's 235 in the Mumbai Test
against England cemented his
place as "the spiritual successor
to Sachin Tendulkar", editor Lawrence
Booth wrote. •
EPL
Burnley 1-0 Stoke
Boyd 58
Leicester 2-0 Sunderland
Slimani 69, Vardy 78
Man Utd 1-1 Everton
Ibrahimovic 90-P Jagielka 22
Watford 2-0 West Brom
Niang 13, Deeney 49
helping them eke out a 1-1 draw.
He roared after his strike from
the penalty spot just about kept
United clinging on in fifth place in
the race for the top four Champions
League spots. •

Sports
21
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Lazio reach
Italian Cup final
• Reuters, Rome
Lazio reached the Italian Cup final
despite losing 3-2 to AS Roma
in the second leg of their last-four
encounter. A brace from Mohamed
Salah turned out to be in vain as
Lazio went through 4-3 on aggregate
to face either Napoli or Juventus.
Leading 2-0 from the first leg,
Lazio increased their aggregate
lead when Sergej Savic scored from
a rebound although Stephan El
Shaarawy replied for Roma. •
Hoffenheim hand Bayern second league defeat
• Reuters
Runaway leaders Bayern Munich
suffered only their second Bundesliga
defeat of the season when
they were beaten 1-0 at surprise
package Hoffenheim on Tuesday.
Third-placed Hoffenheim dominated
the first half and deservedly
won with a goal from Andrej Kramaric.
Bayern, who have 65 points
from 27 games, are still 13 clear of
second-placed RB Leipzig, who
visited Mainz 05 on Wednesday.
Hoffenheim, who had never
previously beaten Bayern in the
league, are third with 51 and still
on course for a Champions League
place while Borussia Dortmund remain
their closest rivals, remaining
fourth after easing past Hamburg
SV 3-0. Bayern were outclassed in
the first half and fell behind to a
Kramaic half-volley which goalkeeper
Sven Ulreich could only deflect
into his net.
The Bavarians nearly levelled
with their first real chance when
Roberto Lewandowski’s strike hit
the crossbar.
Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver
Baumann had more to do in
the second half and Bayern nearly
snatched an equaliser deep
into stoppage time when Lewandowski’s
close-range shot
was deflected wide of the goal.
Gonzalo Castro, Shinji Kagawa
and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
shared the goals in Dortmund’s
win, which left Hamburg - the only
ever-present club in the Bundesliga’s
54-year history - just one point
clear of Augsburg in the relegation
playoff spot. •
BUNDESLIGA
Dortmund 3-0 Hamburg
Castro 13, Kagawa 81,
Aubameyang 90+3
Cologne 1-0 Frankfurt
Jojic 53
Werder Bremen 3-0 Schalke
Gebre Selassie 24, Kruse 76-P,
Eggestein 80
Hoffenheim 1-0 Bayern Munich
Kramaric 21

22
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Showtime
The good Samaritans of
WHAT TO WATCH
Hollywood
• Nasir Rayhan
When it comes to celebrities, we
often take them for billionairebooze
loving-spoiled people,
which may well be true if your
celebrity world revolves around
the likes of Justin Bieber, Wiz
Khalifa and so on. But not all of
them are the pampered, egotist
human beings, we think they are.
Here’s a long list of celebrities
who are played the roles of good
Samaritans in real life.
Tom Cruise
After witnessing a hit-andrun
accident in L.A., the Jerry
Maguire actor called 911 and
stayed with the victim until help
arrived, and followed her to the
hospital.
After finding out that the
victim had no health insurance,
Cruise paid up the $7000 medical
bill all by himself with a wide
smile. Later that year, Cruise and
his former wife Nicole Kidman
were on their yacht near Capri
when they spotted a boat nearby
that caught fire and was sinking.
The couple rescued all five people
aboard the devastated ship.
Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel was once riding his
motorcycle when he suddenly
noticed that the car in front of
him had lost control, which went
on to roll over several times and
finally burst into flames. Working
fast and furiously (pun intended),
Diesel ran to the burning car and
pulled the two children from
the backseat. He then calmly
instructed the driver to climb
over the back seat and get out of
the car. Minutes later, the car was
engulfed in flames.
Kate Winslet
The Titanic actress was among
35 guests at billionaire Richard
Branson’s estate in 2011 when
a fire broke out around 4am.
Although most of the guests were
able to move immediately to
safety, after making sure her two
children were safe, the Oscarwinning
actress went back in
and saved Branson’s 90-year-old
mother.
Ryan Gosling
While walking along a New York
City street, actor Ryan Gosling
spotted a brawl between a
street vendor and another man.
Without saying a word, Gosling
stepped in and broke up the fight,
using his intimidating muscles as
incentive to stop the conflict from
becoming physical. Gosling then
gave the vendor $20 to end the
dispute over a $10 painting, and
carried on with his business as if
nothing happened.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
While vacationing in Hawaii with
his family, the former California
governor and action hero Arnold
Schwarzenegger noticed a man
in the water who seemed to be
struggling. Schwarzenegger
swam out to the man, who
was having cramps and wasn’t
able to swim back to the shore.
Schwarzenegger then helped the
man get on a boogie board and
swam him back to shore, where
he sat with him until he regained
his breath and composure.
Harrison Ford
Han Solo is an avid flyer, who
often accepts rescue missions to
save his town the $1,000 fee for
an airlift. His exploits include
the rescuing of a hiker suffering
from altitude sickness and
dehydration, a 13-year-old Boy
Scout who was lost for 19 hours
and was shivering after spending
a rainy night in the elements,
and two young women who were
hiking on Table Mountain when
one of them fell ill and could not
make it down the mountain on
her own. Her friend called for
help on a cell phone, and was able
to move the injured hiker to a
nearby meadow to await rescue.
Soon their ride came, courtesy of
Indiana Jones.
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman, aka the
“Wolverine” has been seen
saving people’s lives on-screen
for years now. However, the
actor recently showcased his
superhero traits in real life. The
recipient is none other than the
High School Musical actor Zac
Efron. Jackman saved Zac from
a burning set that was getting
out of control. The incident took
place during the filming of their
upcoming feature together, The
Greatest Showman.
A year ago, the Australian
actor helped rescue swimmers
from a dangerous rip ride at
Sydney’s Bondi beach. Being the
Wolverine of the X-Men, Jackman
has had his fair share of onscreen
heroism, but as it seems,
he is a real life hero as well.•
The Matrix
WB, 5:16pm
Keanu Reeves stars in this
sci-fi blockbuster as Thomas
A Anderson, an average
computer programmer. He has
an alter-ego by night as Neo,
a malevolent hacker. The real
story begins when Neo starts to
question his reality; as he digs
deeper, the truth is far from
what he could imagine.
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Laurence
Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss,
Hugo Weaving
X-Men: The Last Stand
Star Movies, 9:30pm
The X-Men are back with new
recruits, The Beast and Angel.
But they have a big problem
ahead of them to deal with—
their team mate Jean Grey who
is possessed by the power of
the Dark Phoenix. Now she is a
danger to herself, her mutant
comrades and the whole
planet.
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Halle
Berry, Ian McKellen, Famke
Janssen, Anna Paquin
A View to a Kill
Movies Now, 11:50pm
James Bond returns home from
Russia with a new computer
chip that cannot be destroyed
even by a nuclear blast. Max
Zorin of Zorin Industries
manufactures these chips. He
is planning to wipe out Silicon
Valley.
Cast: Roger Moore, Christopher
Walken, Tanya Roberts, Grace
Jones •

Showtime
23
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
Kendall Jenner and Pepsi face backlash
over new advert
• Showtime Desk
Model and Kardashian-Jenner
Klan member, Kendall Jenner has
faced huge backlash for her a new
Pepsi commercial inspired by the
protests and race riots in the US.
In the advertisement, Kendall
Jenner takes part in a photoshoot
when hundreds of remarkably
good-looking people appear
to be happily and peacefully
demonstrating down a street.
The “short film”, as Pepsi
describe the advert to be and
Prachi opens up about her career
• Showtime Desk
Bollywood actress Prachi
Desai made her mark by
playing the character of Bani
Walia in the hit TV series
Kasamh Se. The actress made
her debut in Bollywood
with the movie Rock On
in 2008 and was last seen
in Azhar which was based
on the life of controversial
Indian cricketer Mohammad
Azharuddin.
Recently, she made an
appearance at an exclusive
collection launch by
Forevermark diamonds at
OM Jewelers in Mumbai. The
actress sported a stunning
neckpiece by Forevermark
and OM Jewelers along with
a black skirt and an offshoulder
floral top.
The actor revealed that
she feels like she has been “a
bit choosy” because the work
that have been offered to
her “was too repetitive” and
required her to play mature
parts. Prachi, who was 19
when she made her debut
added, “The minute I came
in, I was perceived as a mature
actor.”
The actor talked about her
almost negligible role in Rock On
2: “... this is the most unrelatable
role I have ever played in my
life. I am much younger in my
head than the role that I play
in the film. If I am pulling off
that maturity and complexity
convincingly, then that’s just the
actor in me (laughs).”•
the first commercial of the soda
company’s “Live For Now”
camapaign, climaxes as Jenner
rips off the blonde wig she
is wearing for the shoot and
runs into the crowd, magically
changing her outfit along the
way. She then hands a can of the
drink to a police officer standing
in a line against the protest who
smiles as Kendall’s new friends,
the protesters, laugh along.
Apparently, the advert is
inspired by the Black Lives Matter
movement, which has seen
protests taking place all over the
US in anger at police killings of
people of colour.
Pepsi’s role of casting Jenner,
a priviledged white supermodel,
as a peacemaker between the
police and the protesters has been
criticised on social media.
Twitter was flooded with
deeply sarcastic posts mocking
the “tone deaf” ad. One Twitter
user wrote, “How nice of Kendall
Jenner to stop in the middle of
her photo shoot to end social
injustices by giving that cop a
Pepsi. MLK [Martin Luther King]
who? Rosa [ Parks] who?”
Another user wrote, “I can’t
believe Kendall Jenner ended
police brutality and white
supremacy with a can of Pepsi -
not bad for a girl with no talent.”
Meanwhile, Pepsi have issued
a statement in reaction to the
backlash, maintaining that “this
is a global ad that reflects people
from different walks of life coming
together in a spirit of harmony,
and we think that’s an important
message to convey”.
Jenner is yet to comment on the
matter. However, the reality star/
Vogue-covergirl spoke with People
Style about her advert previously,
“It’s an honor to be following up
some of the icons and amazing,
cool people that have done this
before me,” she said, adding that
being the first model named to
do this since Cindy Crawford is “a
dream come true.” •
Kamal Ahmed to perform
songs of Tagore
• Showtime Desk
Indira Gandhi Culture
Centre (IGCC) is organising
a musical performance
of Rabindra Sangeet to
be performed by Kamal
Ahmed at the Sufia Kamal
Auditorium of Bangladesh
National Museum in the
capital on April 9 at 6pm.
Kamal Ahmed, director,
External Service of
Bangladesh Betar, has
long been performing on
BTV and other private
channels, including the
likes of Tara TV from
India. Despite serving in
the civil service, Ahmed
has pesuaded his career in
music thanks to his great
enthuasiasm for music.
Ahmed took extensive
training from Chhayanaut
under the direct supervision of
Wahidul Haque, Ikhtiar Omar,
Sirajus Salekin and Ustad Ful
Mohammad.
A prolific singer, Ahmed has
already released fourteen solo
and one mixed audio album since
2007. Some of them are – Sada
Megher Bhela, Nana Ronger
Dinguli, Godhuli (A tribute to
Kishore Kumar), Baluka Belay (a
tribute to Hemanta Mukherjee),
Mohakabyer Kobi (A tribute to
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman).
Ahmed has recieved several
awards for his contribution in
music including the prestigious
SAARC Cultural Society Award
and Bangabandhu Research
Foundation Award. •

24
THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 2017
DT
EU PARLIAMENT ADOPTS
BREXIT RED LINES › 9
Back Page
TIGERS EAGER TO GIVE MASHRAFE
PERFECT FAREWELL › 19
GOOD SAMARITANS
OF HOLLYWOOD › 22
Bangabandhu’s unfinished
memoirs to be reprinted in Hindi
• Syed Zainul Abedin
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
will launch a new Hindi version of Sheikh
Mujibur Rahman’s The Unfinished Memoirs
at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on April 8.
The autobiography of Father of the Nation
was first published in June 2012 in
Bangla under the name Asamapta Atmajibanee,
and in English. It is also already available
in Chinese, Japanese, French, Urdu and
Arabic.
Bangabandhu wrote Asamapta Atmajibanee
during his time in prison from1967 to
1969.
The memoirs recall his life from his
childhood through to the social and political
involvements of his student life and the
events which shaped the origin of the independence
movement in Bangladesh following
the partition of India. •
Radio Sweden report
spurs RAB probe
• Arifur Rahman Rabbi
Allegations of torture and extrajudicial killing
made against RAB in a report by Radio Sweden
would be investigated, a RAB spokesperson
yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune. But he
expressed doubts about the veracity of the
report.
The elite force official also questioned
whether the informant quoted in the report
was a RAB official and added that if he were,
he should be prosecuted.
RAB Legal and Media Wing Director Mufti
Mahmud Khan said: “Radio Sweden’s report
is unclear. They have published news based
on the recorded conversation of a so-called
RAB official. If a real RAB official has actually
said such things, then legal actions should
be taken against him. There are also various
gaps in the story; many vague terms have
been used.
“Irrespective of this, since the issue has
come to light, we will definitely look into the
matter.”
The Radio Sweden report, published on its
website on April 4, is based on a taped conversation
with an alleged high-ranking Rapid
Action Battalion (RAB) officer, who was unaware
that he was being recorded.
The informant tells of abductions, the
preparation of kill lists and the murder of individuals
targeted for execution by the force.
He details the brutal methods employed by
RAB during these operations. He also describes
how weapons are planted near the
victim’s remains to give the impression that
RAB members acted in self-defence.
Mufti added: “RAB always operates within
the law. Sometimes we conduct operations
to capture petty criminals, dacoits, terrorists
MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU
or militants and in those cases, when RAB officials
come under fire, they need to defend
themselves by returning fire.
“Sometimes during the exchange of fire,
people die. During these drives, many RAB
officials have also been injured and maimed
and some have even died. The bottom line
is that RAB has caught a lot of criminals over
the span of its career. Over the course of its
career, there have been many attempts made
to tarnish its reputation.”
Local and international rights groups have
accused RAB of abducting and murdering
several hundred people. They allege that
the elite force enjoys impunity for such killings
and have repeatedly demanded that the
“death squad” be disbanded.
A report by human rights watchdog Ain
o Salish Kendra said between January 1 and
March 14 this year, RAB killed six people in
gunfights or crossfires.
Responding to queries about the report,
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
Chairman Kazi Reazul Hoque said: “We have
learned about this after it was reported in various
news media. If these allegations are true,
then the matter should definitely be investigated
and the culprits should be punished.
“Since this report originated in the Swedish
media, we cannot know all the facts for
sure. If we can verify that the source is legitimate,
we can then investigate the allegations
raised in the report. If it appears that human
rights have truly been violated, then we will
approach the authorities concerned to take
action.
“I think the government should conduct an
investigation into the allegations. If anyone is
found to be guilty of such actions, then they
should take measures to punish them.” •
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