Govt to punish culprits for launching arson attacks on schools: Nahid

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid categorically said on Sunday that the government would take lawful actions against the culprits and their perpetrators, who carried out violent attacks on different educational institutions ahead of the January 5 general elections, reports BSS.
"Cases have already been lodged against the culprits and their perpetrators with the respective thanas following information gathered from the eye witnesses and the locals to bring them to book," he said.
Replying to a supplementary question from JSD lawmaker Begum Shirin Akhter (Feni-1), the minister informed the House that the schools and colleges, which were damaged by the attacks of Jamaat-shibir elements, would be reconstructed on an urgent basis.
"We are preparing an assessment list of the loss and damages to repair those educational institutions which were set on fire and vandalised by the anti- liberation forces to frustrate the January 5 polls," he added.
Castigating BNP and its political ally Jamaat-e-Islami for carrying out the barbaric attacks, he said those who attacked the educational institutions were the enemies of the country and the nation as well.
"No sensible human being can launch such heinous attacks on the educational institutions," he said adding that the people of the country must wage a vigorous movement against the culprits for the sake of smooth running of the country's schools and colleges.
In this connection, the minister said the culprits and their perpetrators had not only damaged the school buildings, they also carried out arson attacks on public vehicles across the country in the name of their anti-government agitation.
They even did not spare schoolboy Monir Hossain who was burnt to death as the Jamaat-Shibir activists threw petrol bomb at him. Now the people of the country must unite to resist the anti- liberation forces so that they can not do any harm to the people in the days to come, he said.