When you went to visit Nasirnagar area after the gruesome attack, you clearly stated that the perpetuators will be caught and punished. Yet some political parties in Brahmanbaria accuse you of being responsible for the incident. What can you tell us about that?

I haven’t heard anything like that from any Brahmanbaria politicians except Minister Mohammad Sayedul Haque. It is a conspiracy against me and no one from my district is accusing me. Moreover, if my men were responsible for the attack, I would have made sure of their punishment.

The mastermind behind the attack has already been arrested. I have not tried to do anything about his release. There could be some people in that group who are my followers but I don’t know them. I don’t know every individual who is my follower. Still, if anyone arrested over that attack claims that they are from my party, I will demand punishment for him. There is absolutely no scope of my involvement regarding that matter.

The truth is, the people, who are actually responsible for the attacks are hiding their involvement by accusing me. Sarail constituency stands between Nasirnagar and Brahmanbaria. If my men were involved, they would have had to cross Sarail constituency, which is not possible by not letting any leaders know.

Another point is, there is another route to Nasirnagar that goes through Habiganj and it has another constituency in Madhabpur. So, on the two routes there are two constituencies between Nasirnagar and Brahmanbaria. So, no one can go to Nasirnagar directly from Brahmanbaria. I did not go and I am fairly certain my men did not go there as well.

If we talk about Dewan Atikur Rahman Akhi, Haripur Union Parishad Chairman, he will be punished if police find evidence against him regarding the attack. I will not have any problem with that.  There has been video footage of the meeting from where the people went to attack Nasirnagar. Whoever attacked Nasinagar their faces are clearly seen in that video footage. Now from that video footage it can be found easily whether the attackers were the followers of the minister or not. Why were they not brought under the law? So see, there are so many questions that have not been answered. The main criminals tried to frame me, to hide their role, by exploiting my friendly relations with the Nasirnagar chairman.

What role did you play in the seeking of justice for this incident?

I was shocked and terrorized. It does not matter to me if a community is Hindu or Muslim. I have always seen a community or a person as a human community or human being. I was really hurt by this incident. And I said something at that time, I have always been saying this, and I will tell you again that I want those who attacked that community to be brought to justice. I don’t care who they are.

I want justice. I have talked with the IGP and told him to catch all those attackers through identifying them from the video footage. National Human Rights Commission Chairman Kazi Rezaul Haque was there as well. They have called  press conference and they have clearly mentioned some of the names of people who were directly involved in the attack. But do you know what happened? None of them were arrested. If I were to say that, everybody would think I am naming them to cover up my involvement.

The small ethnic groups of the Chittagong Hill Tracts are divided among themselves. The Mro tribe called a press conference on May 10 and accused the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti (JSS), Pahari Chhatra Parishad (PCP) and United People’s Democratic Front (UPDF) of murder, extortion and kidnap. What are your comments on this in your capacity as the Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Chittagong Hill Tracts affairs? Do you think our government has done enough to eradicate the problems from the hill tracts?

Our government has done plenty. If you had gone to the hill tracts region 20 years earlier, you would have come by a different situation. That situation you won’t see now if you go there. Take mobiles, for instance. There was a time when the hill tracts people were unable to use mobiles, but now everyone can use mobiles anywhere in Bangladesh.

Then there were some roads on the way to the hill tracts where human access was limited at one time. Now there is no such limitation. The hill tracts areas are surely changing. The military has already created some resorts where you can stay; besides, the government is also creating infrastructures to develop the area. We are creating roads even in the remote areas in the hill tracts.

There has been development as well. We have transferred 35 sectors within the zilla parishad of the hill tracts. The councils of these zilla parishads are monitoring the whole hill tracts of Chittagong. For example, in health, education and environment each sector has its own monitoring council now.

Numerous landslides caused by heavy monsoon rains have buried thousands of homes and claimed at least 152 lives in Bangladesh recently. As Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, don’t you think the committee should have had a list of risk-prone settlements in the hill tracts area?

First of all, the recent landslides in Chittagong hill tracts area did not happen because of natural causes. It was a man-made disaster. The way people felled trees, cleared forests for commercial plantation and cultivation, and built houses on hill slopes in the Chittagong region, something disastrous was bound to happen.

Secondly, the parliamentary standing committee is not responsible for making a list. The responsibility for making a list of risk-prone settlements in the hill tracts is that of the district administrations and disaster management ministry. Both the ministries are trying to overcome the challenge. The government is also intervening in the matter. We are shaping a mega plan to avert and tackle disasters in the hills in future. 

When Prime Minister met a group of Islamist leaders led by Hefazat-e-Islam at her official residence in Dhaka, many people thought she was coming to an understanding with them. How would you explain that?

I don’t have any knowledge of the Prime Minister siding with Hefazat-e-Islam. It is true that the Hefazat-e-Islam led leaders met with her, but I don’t much know about any allegiance made by the party.

In the same meeting, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has recognized Dawra degree of Qawmi Madrasa education as equivalent to Master’s degree in general education, even though it does not allow science or technology. How logical is that decision in your view?

First, the recognition of Dawra degree as equivalent to Master’s of general education is still under process. Secondly, we have a vast population who are studying in different Madrasas.

A huge number of students are studying under Qawmi Madrasa and Alia Madrasa education system. It is a specialized sector of education, yet when students from these institutions come out they don’t find any chance to work. Do you think it is fair to them? To take the entire education system under government jurisdiction this decision was made.

You are a politician and a writer as well. Your book on Sheikh Kamal was well received by readers. Do you have any intention or plan to write more on political issues in future?  R.A.M. Obaidul Muktadir: I frequently write on political issues.

I generally complement other issues with politics. For example, I have written on Bangladeshi politics and Islam, political tug war, the continuous war of democracy, terrorism. I have plans to continue writing. I am basically a reluctant writer. I don’t write regularly but whenever I have thought of something I have written about it.