Business leaders of the country Saturday strongly condemned the brutal killing of over one hundred high ranking army officers at the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters in the capital during the two-day armed mutiny and conveyed sympathy to the bereaved family members of the slain.
"The loss inflicted on the country through the killings of a number of brave officers of the army and a number of civilians is irreparable," a joint statement signed by 11 top leaders of chambers and trade bodies said.
The business leaders prayed for the salvation of the departed souls and conveyed sympathy to the bereaved family members.
They also urged the countrymen to remain vigilant to avoid the recurrence of such shocking incidents and demanded proper trial of the heinous act and exemplary punishment of the people involved to ensure social and economic stability.
They also hailed the wise steps taken by the prime minister to solve the crisis, which broke out on Wednesday morning.
The signatories to the joint statement are Annisul Huq, president of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), Mahbubur Rahman, president of International Chamber of Commerce-Bangladesh, Abdul Hafiz Chowdhury, president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dhaka, Zafar Osman, president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, M A Latif MP, president of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Anwar-ul-Alam Chowdhury (Parvez), president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Waliur Rahman Bhuiyan, president of Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Md. Fazlul Haque, president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), Abdul Hai Sarker, chairman of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), Md. Nazrul Islam Mazumder, chairman of Bangladesh Association of Banks and AKM Rafiqul Islam, chairman of Bangladesh Insurance Association.
Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) organised a board meeting to condemn the ghastly and heinous massacre.
In the meeting, DCCI also prayed for peace and salvation of the departed souls, expressed sympathy to the injured and family members who lost their near and dear ones.
DCCI expressed the hope that necessary steps would be taken to stop recurrence of such brutal incidents in future and to bring the criminals to justice.
Anwar-ul-Alam Chowdhury condemned the killings, saying this out-of-the-blue incident has inflicted irrecoverable loss on the nation and defence and security system of the country.
In a press release, he urged the government to identify the vested quarters, if any, behind the incident that might have tried to harm the country.
He also demanded fair investigation into the incident and publish its report. He also demanded identification of the people responsible and their exemplary punishment.
Senior Vice President SM Shahab Uddin and Vice President Delwar Hossain Raja of Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) echoed the same feeling and urged people from all walks of life including the business community and industrialists to play sincere role with patience to face the situation.
Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) in a press release protested and condemned the killing of military and civilian people and conveyed sympathy to the bereaved family members of the slain.
Khaled Mohammad Jewel Molla, general secretary of REHAB, said the whole nation needed to work together to face the crisis for the sake of peace and security.
Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Saturday cut short formalities of its 47th annual general meeting and made the event simpler because of the heinous genocide during the two-day mutiny.
Abul Kashem Ahmed, first vice president of the FBCCI, in a condolence message said the country and the nation have suffered huge losses with the killing of the valiant sons of the armed forces.
He prayed for salvation of the departed souls and conveyed sympathy to the bereaved family members. He also urged all to face the critical situation with patience for the sake of the country and the nation.
