FROM PAGE 3

“No one convicted by the International Crimes Tribunal should be allowed to contest in elections. The tribunal also has jurisdiction over organisations complicit in crimes against humanity. Awami League represents a banned entity, and anyone associated -- directly or indirectly -- with it must be held accountable under the law,” he said.

Referring to the previous regime, the attorney general alleged that members of the so-called civil society, including university teachers, lawyers and journalists, became subservient to authoritarian rule. They played a key role in turning Bangladesh into a fascist state, he alleged.

“Differences between political parties are not irreconcilable. Dialogue can resolve disagreements. But when it comes to fascism, there is no room for division -- we must be united,” Asaduzzaman said.

In his remarks, Debate for Democracy Chairman Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron said the Awami League cannot evade responsibility for the July killings.

“No assassination during the July movement happened without the consent of fugitive Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Over the past 15 years, the Awami regime has built torture cells, disappeared citizens, and committed acts of violence that are unforgivable,” he said.