State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat on Thursday said only terrorists will be brought to book based on specific evidences and no innocent students will be harassed.
"We want to firmly say that the law will be enforced to only terrorists on the basis of specific evidence . . . we have clearly instructed that no innocent student be harassed," he told journalists at a briefing at her ministry's conference room at Bangladesh Secretariat.
Noting that only the people whose involvement will be found in criminal offenses will be arrested, Arafat said from the beginning, the government has been giving protection to the students and never attributed the liability of destruction to them.
"We have respect to the emotions and feelings of the protesting students. We attributed the liability of the destruction to the terrorists. It should be cleared to all," he said.
The state minister asked the police administration so that the students who took part in the demonstrations, chanted slogans and distributed water among protesters and their family members do not face any harassment.
Expressing deep sorrow and condemning for every casualty centring the quota reform movement, he said the government is firmly committed to holding trials of all deaths through the independent judicial commission that has already been formed.
Arafat said the commission will independently carry out a thorough investigation into every incident of casualty and bring all responsible people to book.
"If needed, we will take help of external experts for forensic test and postmortem in the investigation process as we are committed to ensure cent percent transparency and remain accountable," he added.
Referring to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's meeting at her Ganabhaban residence with family members of those who became victims of the incident, the state minister said he personally talked to family members of Abu Sayeed.
Arafat said Abu Sayeed's family wanted nothing but justice.
"(In reply) I told them, you are the first victims of the incident. And we are also similarly victims of every casualty as disinformation campaign is being carried out against the country centering these deaths," he said, adding that he assured them of proper justice.
About the destruction carried out during the quota reform movement, Arafat said the nature of attacks on different government establishments was militant-like as breaking jail gate and bringing prisoners, including high level militants, out of the jail, and looting arms and ammunitions can never be the works of students.
The state minister said launching attacks on metro stations, Disaster Management Bhaban, Setu Bhaban and toll plazas were not the acts of students, rather those were carried out by an infiltrated third party. —BSS
