Law Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul on Saturday said the fascist Awami League (AL) government had carried out brutal torture, oppression on students on university campuses and other people across the country by branding them as Chhatra Shibir or Jamaat leaders or activists.
"During the last 15 years' regime of the government (led by fascist Sheikh Hasina), none can speak in favour of Jamaat-Shibir and against the torture, which came down on them through the 'politics of tagging'," he said while speaking at a discussion at the auditorium of Bangladesh National Museum in city's Shahbagh area.
The 'Bongio Shahitto Sova', a cultural platform, organized the discussion on Dr Asif Nazrul's novel titled 'Ami Abu Bokor' centring the July-August Mass Uprising.
Dr Asif Nazrul said he became frustrated facing difficulties in publishing his writings in newspapers against the ruling party-led government in the recent past.
In this democratic country like Bangladesh, he faced difficulties just for expressing different opinions, he stated.
"Many dear and near ones left me, maintained distance with me when I asked in which law people can be beaten on the suspicion of Shibir," he said, criticizing the fascist government's practice of suppressing people's freedom of speech.
"I knew three topics cannot be discussed. First one is the rule (of the country) and the second one is Hasina-India. I am not telling the three one still now," he said with smile in face.
Noting that he had been staying on the university campus for 35 years, Asif said students would have been tagged as Shibir intentionally.
On university campus, even no teacher came to rescue their students who were tagged with Shibir, he said expressing regret.
Highlighting the miserable days in the fascist regime, he said, "I had to discuss all matters with caution in talk-shows".
"I had to face many cases, financial crisis and even social boycotting just for not speaking in favour of the government," Asif stated.
Sheikh Hasina ruined the normal relations among the people of the country, he added.
For criticizing the government even in the democratic way, people feared to mingle with him, he said, adding, "When, one of my close friends in the university, became a high government official in the country, he did not invite me in his daughter's wedding ceremony."
"However, he invited one of our classmates as that person was a Chhatra League leader with whom he (classmate) had no close friendship," he added.
Paying rich tributes to the martyrs and injured of the July-August Mass Uprising, he said they brought back a new boundless freedom for the country.
He expressed hope to build a 'much better' Bangladesh in the days to come, saying that, "If we fail to build a Bangladesh much better than the regime of Awami League, the sacrifices and contributions of the mass uprising will go in vein." —BSS
