Victims of BNP-Jamaat arson and terrorism in 2013-2014 have sent letters to the US State Department seeking justice. The letter sent by the family members of those injured and killed in the BNP-Jamaat terrorist attacks across the country has provided the names and their involvement of 40 central leaders of BNP and over a hundred local-level BNP leaders.
On December 10, 2022, this report and a letter of about 700 pages were sent to the US State Department on behalf of the victims’ families in Bangladesh. US analysts are conducting a thorough investigation on this issue this year. An official working at the US Embassy in Bangladesh said that the victims provided newspaper clippings and statements identifying the perpetrators of the sabotage. The State Department has given the task to verify it to the embassy, which is currently going on.
This source in the US Embassy also said that the complaints are being investigated with the utmost confidentiality. There has been evidence in mass media. But the recent activities of the BNP leaders are also being scrutinized if their statements on social media are related to instigating past sabotages. Then, the US State Department, in July, will issue a visa ban on the names of BNP leaders involved in violence, killings, women and children abuse, and arson.
According to high-level diplomatic sources in Bangladesh, the families of hundreds of victims who lost their lives in petrol bombings across the country in 2013 and 2014 and the thousands of victims who were injured have sent letters signed by almost two hundred people directly to the US State Department. Medical documents and media reports on the deaths and injuries of the victims of the attack have also been attached along with the classified letter. Direct instructions from Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman to continue the sabotage despite the brutal deaths of many people are under investigation. In addition, the USA is also investigating instigating comments and remarks of BNP leaders Amanullah Aman, Nipun Roy, Salauddin Ahmed, Naseeruddin Pintu, Sultan Salauddin Tuku, Mirza Abbas, Shaheed Uddin Chowdhury Anyi, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Mosharraf Hossain, Mir Nasir, Rumin Farhana, Iqbal Hossain Tuku, Nadeem Mostafa. , Ruhul Quddus Talukdar Dulu, Engineer Md Shahiduzzaman, Alamgir Kabir, Mizanur Rahman Minu, and Aminul Haque in public rallies, mass media and social media.
The letter pointed out the identities of 40 central leaders of the BNP and the local leaders where these sabotages took place on school-going students, office-going women, and daily wage workers across the country. In the letter, the victims described their physical and financial hardships due to BNP’s rampant violent activities.
Violations of human rights, torture, obstruction of normal movement, abuse of women and children, and incitement to violence are always very serious crimes according to the US visa policy. Moreover, the recently announced visa policy for Bangladesh also recommends imposing visa restrictions on those who are involved in violence and obstructing fair elections. So, BNP leaders who were involved and fueled the arson attacks across the country centering national elections are more likely to come under this new ban.
According to a diplomatic source in Bangladesh, the US State Department is gathering information published in the media and social media about the past and recent activities of BNP leaders who have been accused of sabotage. They are also collecting and verifying this information independently through their sources. They have not yet officially informed the Bangladesh government about the upcoming ban. But they will surely inform as part of state courtesy before announcing the new visa ban.