Himu's Window

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/07/28/d70728020124.htm     Editorial Verdict against militancy Let no one doubt our resolve to fight it   The conviction of former minister Barrister Aminul Haque and 24 others to a long prison sentence is clearly a historic judgment. There are quite a few reasons why this verdict stands out as a judicial landmark. In the first place, it is a maiden conviction ever to be handed in a case of patronising militants. The number of convicts -- 25 to be exact, including the former minister -- is indicative of the magnitude of the crime committed. The fact, however, that 17 of them, inclusive of the ex-minister, are absconding, means that they have to be ferreted out and made to face justice. That they have been found guilty of promoting and supporting Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh in their acts of extortion and torture of people in a court of law puts across some strong signals. It lends a robust credence to the widely ackno...

http://us.franceguide.com/edito.html?EditoId=91545   Masterpieces of Ganges delta. Collections from the Bangladesh museums     M usée des arts asiatiques Guimet Bangladesh possesses an immensely important cultural heritage, this arising from the fact that the eastern half of Bengal has been one of the cultural richest regions of the Indian world; a vision far from the catastrophic one that the western world often tends to favour. The region is associated with the art of the Pala and Sena dynasties (8th – 13th century). Archaeological study has however revealed vestiges that are more ancient like the Mahasthan site which stands on what used to be Pundravardhana, and goes back to the Maurya and Sunga periods (3rd – 1st century BC). It has also revealed vestiges from the Gupta period (4th – 6th century). Pundravardhana-Mahasthan is, to this ...

  http://thedailystar.net/2007/07/27/d7072701011.htm     JMB patron Aminul jailed 24 others also handed 31 years behind bars for helping militants   Anwar Ali, Rajshahi Former post and telecommunications minister barrister Aminul Haque and 24 others were yesterday sentenced to 31 years and six months' imprisonment in the first-ever judgment of a case for patronising Islamist militants. The convicts also include Rajshahi district BNP Secretary Shish Muhammad. The Second Additional Sessions Judge's Court, Rajshahi convicted them for aiding and abetting the militants of Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) in extorting and torturing people in Bagmara upazila of the district in 2004. The convicts were also fined Tk 25,000 each and in default they will have to suffer three years more in jail. Two accused union council chairmen--Besharatullah and Rafiqul Islam--were acquitted in the case. Judge Rezaul Islam delivered the judgment amid tight s...

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/debate/letters/article2120659.ece   From The Times July 23, 2007 Bangladesh arrest Sir, Bangladesh, a strategic country of 150 million people, has a proud history of progress under secular democracy since its independence in 1971, punctuated by regrettable periods of regression under authoritarian military rule. We are therefore gravely concerned about the undignified arrest this week of the former Prime Minister and Awami League president Sheikh Hasina. She was seized in the early hours of July 16 and imprisoned under emergency powers that appear to deny her basic legal rights, including legal representation. Sheikh Hasina returned voluntarily to her homeland in early May to answer accusations of extortion and murder laid against her, even though the Government sought actively to keep her in exile while transiting through London after a family visit to the US. There are widespread allegations that her arrest is poli...

    http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/07/24/d707240702104.htm     Ancient Bengal treasures finally being flown to Paris for display   Anwar Ali, Rajshahi Finally, the 24 rare ancient Bengal treasures of Barind Research Museum (BRM) under Rajshahi University (RU) are being flown to Paris for display at a museum there for 'a great global exposure' of Bangladesh. The priceless objects of historical interest will be flown in the first week of next month. A team from France's Guimet Museum are already in Bangladesh and it is due to visit BRM soon for packaging the treasures, said BRM Director Mohammad Zakaria. These are scheduled to be taken to Dhaka on August 1 and to be flown for Paris on August 4, he said. Some 120 objects selected from Bangladesh National Museum, Mahasthangarh, Paharpur and Mainamati Archeological Museum and BRM will be put on display at the mMuseum, said sources. France's famous Guimet Museum, dedicated to Asian arts,...

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/07/23/d70723012214.htm   Aminul Haque, 3 other graft suspects submit wealth report Four more high-profile graft suspects including former telecommunications minister Aminul Haque and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's nephew Shahrin Islam Tuhin submitted wealth statements to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) through representatives yesterday. The other two are ex-communications secretary Ismail Zabiullah and former Awami League (AL) lawmaker from Jessore Ali Reza Raju. Barrister Aminul Haque, who stands accused of aiding and abetting the Islamic militants, turned in his statement through his lawyer Nazmul Alam. According to the statement, he owns a four-storey building on an eight-katha plot in Baridhara, a house on the outskirts of Rajshahi, a plot in Savar, and around 139 decimals of land in different other places. Aminul, his wife and daughters have Tk 30 lakh in 21 bank accounts. Besides, he has gold worth around Tk 1.6 lakh, T...

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/07/24/d70724060184.htm   No chance of vote rigging in digitised voter list ECs say in Rajshahi The two election commissioners, who are visiting Rajshahi to see the preparations for the enumeration of the voter list with photographs, yesterday asked for cooperation of all in this regard. Election Commissioners Brig Gen (retd) Shakhawat Hossain and Sahul Hossain also said there would not be any chances of vote rigging after completion of the digitised voter list. In the morning, the election commissioners met with district level officials and newly appointed assistant registration officers at the conference room of Rajshahi deputy commissioner's office. Presided over by Deputy Commissioner Khalilur Rahman, the meeting was also attended by Col Taher of 11 Artillery Division, District Election Officer Sayed Mohammad Musa, senior army and police officials. They said there would be tight biometric security measures under the new voter e...