Asif Nazrul faces backlash over statement on 1971, expresses regret

Law adviser Asif Nazrul has expressed regret a few hours after making the comment that the crimes committed by Sheikh Hasina and her cronies in Bangladesh were not as heinous as the crimes committed by the Pakistani army in 1971.

Earlier on Tuesday, he made the comment at a discussion and information exhibition on the trial of the massacres committed during the July Uprising. His statement was widely criticized on social media.

Then at 7:31pm, Asif Nazrul posted a status on his personal Facebook profile in this regard.

He wrote: "It is not right to compare Sheikh Hasina's atrocities with the atrocities of the Pakistani army."

He further wrote: "Sheikh Hasina's atrocities are unbelievable. Sheikh Hasina was the one who ordered the burning of bodies and injured people, the indiscriminate killing of women, teenagers and children, the killing of civilians by helicopters, the shooting of young people in agony of death, and the killing of people without providing them with medical treatment in hospitals."

The law adviser mentioned that these activities are considered serious crimes even on the battlefield.

Asif Nazrul further said: "But because of that, it is not right for me to compare her atrocities with the atrocities of the Pakistani forces on the people of Bangladesh in 1971. Both are the most heinous crimes. I express my apologies to those who thought that I had belittled the massacre of the Pakistani forces in 1971."