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A report published by the news outlet Manabzamin reveals that Tarique Rahman, Chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the current Prime Minister, was subjected to inhumane torture during the 1/11 period.
The report was published on Thursday (May 7).
The report states: Tarique Rahman, Chairman of the BNP. Currently in state power, having won an unforgettable election in Bangladesh’s history. There has been endless curiosity about his 17 years in Britain: how he was, how he lived, and why he had to go there. For a long time, it remained unknown when, how, and by whom he was arrested and subjected to inhumane torture.
Recent investigations have uncovered sensational information. The investigation reveals that during the 1/11 period, on March 7, 2007, Tarique Rahman was arrested from his Cantonment residence. The findings include an account of who arrested him and how. It is known that, under the orders of high-ranking army officials, Colonel (retd.) Imran arrested him from the Moinul Road residence without any specific charges and took him to the DGFI’s Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC). The decision to arrest Tarique Rahman was made at Army Headquarters in the presence of General Moeen U Ahmed and Brigadier General ATM Amin.
According to information provided by Major Imran, he arrived at Khaleda Zia’s residence on Moinul Hossain Road with a runner and a driver. At the time, there was a heavy presence of law enforcement personnel around the residence. Major Imran entered through the main gate of the residence and remained inside his car. Approximately three hours later, when Tarique Rahman emerged from the residence, Major Imran escorted him into the car and took him to the designated destination. After driving some distance, the runner accompanying Major Imran covered Tarique Rahman’s face with a black cloth. Tarique Rahman requested to open a window, but Major Imran denied it, citing security reasons.
Subsequently, officials responsible for the CTIB began interrogating Tarique Rahman. The then-acting Colonel GS of CTIB, Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Saiful Islam Joardar, was present there. Under his instruction, other officials hurled vulgar abuses at Tarique Rahman. Tarique Rahman was kept at the JIC for three to four days. There, he was blindfolded for hours. He was tortured by being hung with his hands tied. Physical torture was continuously inflicted upon him for a long time. It was inhumane and barbaric.
Tarique Rahman was brought to the JIC twice. In December 2007, he was interrogated for several consecutive days at the JIC. Retired Colonel Abdur Rob Khan stated in his testimony that, under the instruction of Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Saiful Islam Joardar, a forced confessional statement was recorded from Tarique Rahman. In that statement, it was claimed that Tarique Rahman apologized to the nation for his mistakes.
Information regarding who was present during this time has also emerged in a recent investigation. Four high-ranking army officials were continuously present and obtained this statement. They included Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Saiful Islam Joardar, Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Abdur Rob Khan, Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Zahid Hossain, and Major (retd.) Monir. Through torture, Tarique Rahman was rendered almost crippled.
He could not even walk normally. A story of his torture is included in the investigative report. It states that currently arrested Lieutenant General (retd.) Masud Uddin Chowdhury has given a testimony regarding this. According to the testimony, Tarique Rahman’s maternal grandmother passed away in January 2008. At that time, he was released on parole. General Masud Uddin Chowdhury then observed Tarique Rahman limping. He then tried to find out how the torture had been inflicted upon him.
Through family contacts, he learned that DGFI officials had subjected him to inhuman physical torture. Disturbed by this, he asked Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed why this torture had been carried out. An argument ensued between the two.
General Masud further stated in his testimony that this incident created a significant rift between him and Army Chief Moeen U Ahmed. A description of how Tarique Rahman was kept during the torture has been found. Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Abdur Rob Khan admitted during interrogation that the torture was carried out under the command of General (retd.) ATM Amin. Under his command, Tarique Rahman was hung from the ceiling.
Warrant Officer Fazlu stated during interrogation that Brigadier Amin had told them to keep him hanging until further instructions were given. At one point, he fell from the ceiling and suffered a severe injury to his waist. For years, Tarique Rahman had to go from hospital to hospital. The presence of seven high-ranking army officials in these incidents has been confirmed by the investigation.
These officers are: Brigadier General (retd.) ATM Amin (then Director of CTIB), Brigadier General (retd.) Chowdhury Fazlul Bari (then Director of CTIB), Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Saiful Islam Joardar (then acting Colonel GS of CTIB), Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Afzal Naser Chowdhury (then JSO-1), Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Abdur Rob Khan (then JIC Commander of CTIB), Lieutenant Colonel (retd.) Md. Farid Uddin (then JSO-1), and Major (retd.) Monir (then JSO-2, CTIB).
During interrogation, Masud Uddin Chowdhury claimed that he was not involved in the torture of Tarique Rahman. General Moeen had given him another posting, where he was serving as PSO. General Masud also claimed that General Moeen kept him away because Tarique Rahman was his close relative. He also described during interrogation why a rift developed between Tarique Rahman and General Masud, stating that this distance arose centered on ‘Operation Clean Heart’.
It is noteworthy that on September 11, 2008, Tarique Rahman was forced to leave the country. Prior to this, a bond of undertaking was signed by him.