JS Panel Pulls Back Its Recommendation for Alternative of Female UNOs

The parliamentary committee has finally pulled back from the recommendation of excluding female officers in giving 'Guard of Honor' to the heroic freedom fighters. The committee did not make that recommendation in the minutes of its June 13 meeting.

The minutes of the meeting on the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs held at the Sangsad Bhaban on Sunday (August 8) were approved.

At the committee meeting in June, it was recommended that arrangements be made during the day for awarding the Guard of Honor to the heroic freedom fighters and that necessary steps be taken to determine an alternative person to the female UNO. This recommendation was later informed by a notification from the Parliament Secretariat.

According to the policy of the government, after the death of a heroic freedom fighter, the concerned district or upazila administration gives him state honor. DC or UNO lives there as a representative of the government. Officials representing the government in the coffin paid their respects with flowers.

In many places, there are female officers in charge of the Upazila Nirbahi Officer, and there the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs objected.

After the recommendation of the committee, there was criticism in various quarters. Opposition parties, members of the government and members of the ruling party also expressed outrage over the recommendation. The Prime Minister's intervention was demanded in the Parliament so that the recommendations of the parliamentary committee were not implemented.

After the meeting on Sunday (August 8th), committee chairman Shahjahan Khan said a member of the committee had raised the issue. The minutes have been approved today. That issue has been omitted.

According to the minutes of the meeting, there was no recommendation to remove 'Female Officer’s Guard of Honor ' from the decision list of the meeting. However, it is mentioned in the minutes that Major (Retd.) Rafiqul Islam, a member of the committee, raised the issue in the previous meeting.

Meanwhile, it was recommended to present at the next meeting information on the progress of updating the documents related to land and deposit of Muktijoddha Sangsad and Kalyan Trust.

During the meeting, the ministry informed that the treatment of heroic freedom fighters will be provided free of cost in all government hospitals as well as 22 specialized hospitals.

Besides, it was recommended to shift the existing shops to the ground floor of the district or upazila Bir Muktijoddha Complex office.

The meeting was chaired by Shahjahan Khan and was attended by committee members Akam Mozammel Haque, Minister for Liberation War Affairs, Kazi Firoz Rashid and AKM Rahmatullah.