HC rule on govt on definition of freedom fighters

The High Court today asked the government to explain in four weeks why it should not be directed to determine the definition of freedom fighters before it finalises their list.

The HC bench of Justice Mirza Hussain Haider and Justice Khijir Ahmed issued the rule in response to a writ petition filed by a group of freedom fighters.

The freedom fighters including one SM Sohrab Hossain moved the petition to the High Court on Monday saying that the Ministry of Liberation Affairs had undertaken initiative for publishing a final list of freedom fighters without determining who can be called a freedom fighter.

The petition says that several governments published several lists of freedom fighters over the years without fixing the definition of freedom fighters. Therefore, names of some fake freedom fighters made it to the lists and many original freedom fighters remain excluded, they said.