Your Right To Know
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Buddhist leaders yesterday demanded removal of the Cox's Bazar superintendent of police and immediate action against him for his alleged inaction during the recent atrocities on the minority community in Ramu.
They made the demand at a closed-door meeting with Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Adviser Gowher Rizvi in Ramu. The SP, Selim Mohammad Jahanagir, was present.
The leaders handed over the adviser a seven-point charter of demands to bring back communal harmony in the upazila.
Incensed apparently by a Facebook posting of a photo derogatory to the holy Quran, religious bigots in Ramu destroyed 12 pagodas and more than 50 houses on the night of September 29.
The charter held inaction of the police responsible for the atrocities on the Buddhists. “Had the police played its due role, the situation would not have been so grave.”
The demands include immediate identification of the culprits, their arrest and meting out exemplary punishment to them, formation of a special tribunal for a fair and neutral probe into the atrocities, engagement of senior and experienced investigators in the probe, appointments of competent OC at Ramu Police Station and SP in Cox's Bazar, better treatment for top monk Satyapriya Mohathero and financial support to the family of Swapan Barua, who died of heart attack after seeing the destroyed monasteries.
Later, addressing a citizens' rally on the Sima Bihar premises, Gowher Rizvi said he went there to say sorry to the Buddhist community for the atrocities.
Terming the Ramu incident a national disaster, the adviser said, “I have lost my words seeing the level of the atrocities. Those who unleashed the despicable violence have no religion, party and humanity. They will be tried on the soil of this country.”
The Ramu atrocities had nothing to do with politics and nobody should do politics with the incident, he mentioned.
Speaking at the programme as the chief guest, Industries Minister Dilip Barua asked, “Why the police are not arresting the culprits even after a month of the attack?”
The minister warned of trying the people who are harbouring the culprits.
Special Public Prosecutor and Cox's Bazar Awami League Joint Secretary Nurul Islam said the home minister, industries minister and inspector general of police visited Ramu on September 30.
“How could fresh attacks be carried out in Teknaf and Ukhiya the same day following their return to Dhaka? Who is responsible for this? Has this not put the role of the local administration into question?”
Though the Ramu upazila administration organised the programme, upazila chairman, upazila nirbahi officer and the SP did not speak due to objection by the Buddhist leaders.
Monk Satyapriya Mohathero, Deputy Commissioner of Cox's Bazar Mostak Ahmed Chowdhury, Buddhist leaders Nitish Barua, Tarun Barua, Awami Swechchhasebak League leaders Rahul Barua, Sunil Barua and Hindu community leader Babul Sharma addressed the programme, among others.
All the speakers blasted the police for their miserable failure to check the savageries and demanded the authorities concerned take the cops under the purview of law.
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