The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the case of Sheikh Hasina, opposition leader of the Parliament of Bangladesh at the time the communication was submitted, as outlined in the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/186/12(b)-R.1), and to the resolution adopted at its 185th session (October 2009),

Taking into account the information note of 24 March 2010 provided by the Home Ministry and forwarded by the delegation of Bangladesh at the meeting it held with the Committee during the 122nd Assembly,

Recalling that the initial line of inquiry into the grenade attack of 21 August 2004 on Sheikh Hasina and other Awami League leaders was a complete fabrication based on the “confession” of a petty criminal, Joj Miah, who had under duress admitted carrying out the attack with a criminal gang and whose family had been provided with a long-term government subsidy; that in February 2007 a new investigation was opened and revealed that Horkatul Jihad al Islami (Huji) militants, including its leader, Mufti Abdul Hannan, had carried out the attack, and enabled the police to arrest more suspects and to recover grenades, rifles and explosives,

Considering that, according to the Home Ministry's report of March 2010, at the end of the investigation, the Investigating Officer (IO) submitted a charge sheet against 22 persons including Mufti Abdul Hannan Munshi and former Deputy Minister, Mr. Abdus Salam Pinto; of those 22 persons, eight accused were absconding, including Mr. Salam Pinto's brother Mowlana Tajuddin; that during the trial the case was referred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to identify the source of the grenades; that investigation revealed the following: the grenade attack was decided on at a meeting in the Government quarters of Deputy Minister Abdus Salam Pintu; his brother Mowlana Tajuddin supplied the grenades for the attack; former State Minister of Home Affairs Mr. Lutfozzaman Babar and Mr. Abdus Salam Pinto provided administrative and financial backup and support; the then government arranged for Tajuddin to leave Bangladesh; the case is still under investigation,

Noting finally that, according to the delegation, the Speaker has instructed the Standing Committee on the Ministry of Home Affairs to monitor the investigation in this case,

1. Thanks the delegation of Bangladesh for its cooperation and for the information provided; thanks in particular the Speaker for the initiative he has taken to follow closely the proceedings in this case;

2. Is pleased to note that progress has been made in the investigation leading to the arrest not only of persons suspected of having perpetrated the crime but also of others thought to have masterminded it;

3. Wishes to be keptinformed of further progress in the investigation, which, it hopes, will soon reveal the full truth in this case;

4. Requests the Secretary General to convey the resolution to the parliamentary and competent governmental authorities, inviting them to keep the Committee informed of the proceedings;

5. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and report to it at its next session, to be held on the occasion of the 123rd IPU Assembly (October 2010).

Note: you can download a complete electronic version of the brochure "Results of the 122nd IPU Assembly and related meetings" in PDF format (file size 649K approximately). This version requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, which you can download free of charge.

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