Blasting the main opposition BNP for siding with the war criminals, lawmaker Moinuddin Khan Badal on Monday said that absence of BNP MPs from the House has proved they did not want trial of war criminals.

Taking the floor on a point of order, Badal, a lawmaker of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, said the followers of Ghulam Azam enforced hartal Monday, the day of pronouncement of the verdict in the case against Ghulam Azam and BNP refrained from joining the House.

"BNP talks about democracy and maintaining transparency in holding the trial but what type of transparency they want is not clear to us . . . BNP MPs' absence has proved they did not want to free the nation from the curse of the crime against humanity committed by Jamaat-e-Islami during the liberation war," he added.

The fight against war criminals is not merely a political one, he said, adding that the nation is fighting to build the country based on the spirit of liberation war.

He said the tragic killings of August 15, 1975, making anti- liberation element Shah Aziz as Prime Minister of Bangladesh, giving Ghulam Azam citizenship and making Jamaat leaders ministers are linked with each other.

Warning BNP of the consequences of backing religious-based politics, he said present Pakistan is the best example of practising religious-based politics. In Pakistan, Muslims are killing Muslims, he added.

He said freedom fighters would never compromise with the anti-liberation elements and urged all to join the nationwide campaign against the anti-liberation forces.

Ends/AMA/15/07/13