Awami League Denounces 'False and Distorted' Media Report Targeting Sheikh Hasina

Bangladesh's Awami League government has strongly protested an international broadcaster BBC report calling it "false and distorted" in its depiction of Hasina. The report based on a claimed leaked audio tape accuses Hasina of having sanctioned the use of "lethal force" in the protest demonstrations of last July.

On Wednesday, the BBC cited Hasina as having purportedly given instructions supporting fatal action toward protesters in a report based on an 18-second audio recording allegedly of the previous Prime Minister. The Awami League, however, denied the report's contents and authenticity of the recording.

In an official statement released Thursday, the party asserted it was "deeply worried about the unfortunate, unexpected, and unimaginable telecast of a false and misleading report regarding the Prime Minister, daughter of Bangabandhu and President of Awami League, Sheikh Hasina," in response to what it referred to as a "baseless 18-second so-called audio tape."

The BBC World Service had broadcast a 35-minute program as part of an investigative report series, the party observed, but berated the inclusion of what it called an "unverified audio clip" in which Hasina is heard making alleged endorsement of taking life. "Against the background of continued human rights abuses in Bangladesh under the illegal, fascist government of Yunus, the BBC World Service recently broadcast a 35-minute report as part of an investigative news feature.". But the report intentionally and irrelevantly added an unauthenticated audio clip reportedly featuring Honourable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in which she is suspected to have sanctioned the application of lethal force against protesters," said the Awami League.

The party also questioned the neutrality of the report, asserting that it "lacks neutrality and objectivity" and displays "clear bias." They even questioned the authenticity of the recording itself, highlighting that the audio "has no identifiable recipient."

"If the audio was authentic, there would have been a particular recipient.". This video has been created artificially with artificial intelligence with the obvious purpose of defaming Sheikh Hasina, in connivance with political rivals of the incumbent government and the Awami League," the statement added. "Even the forensic audio company upon which the BBC professes to have sought advice could not verify its authenticity with absolute certainty. Additionally, the report does not offer any counter-narrative or viewpoint from the side of the Prime Minister."

Awami League also condemned the sources quoted in BBC's report, saying they were largely from law enforcement and legal establishments with opposition inclinations. These sources, the party said, have been known to "defend war criminals masquerading in the name of humanitarianism.

Speaking on last year's student protests against quota reform, the party stated the government had adopted a "measured response," keeping a close watch on developments and paying heed to the students' voices. But it contended that "anti-Bangladesh domestic and international forces" manipulated the movement for their interests, with the aim to cause "terror and destruction.

The statement continued to charge that "Pakistan-backed extremist communal groups and terrorist networks" had used the protests to organize violence, especially in the capital, Dhaka.

"Intelligence sources revealed that those groups had hatched plans for coordinated assaults and arson on important national establishments, government offices, and ministries. Assaults on strategic points of infrastructure (KIPs), breaking of jails, killings, and evacuation of high-profile terrorists from detention were being planned -- and subsequently, many of these incidents did take place. Those terrorist and extremist groups practically issued a call to war against the state with a view to jeopardizing the sovereignty of Bangladesh. The BBC report totally disregards these facts," the Awami League added.

The party charged that the report left out key facts, including the violent aftermath of the protests. "During the July–August period, more than 450 police stations were attacked, weapons were looted, jailbreaks took place, and deaths occurred — none of which have been mentioned by the BBC," the statement highlighted.

The Awami League further noted that protest activities persisted even after Hasina had departed the country, downplaying the argument that the violence was directly caused by her orders. They also referenced a BBC Bangla report in which a Hizb ut-Tahrir leader publicly acknowledged infiltrating the protests using the cover of student activism — something the party claimed further supported Hasina's accusations of terror involvement.

"In one of BBC Bangla's own video news reports, Hizb ut-Tahrir leader, who is a designated terrorist group leader, confessed to having infiltrated the protests as ordinary students. This confirms Sheikh Hasina's claim that terror groups were behind the violence. But this fact is missing in the new report," it stated.

In its final statement, the Awami League criticized the report's "partisan presentation" and the decision to publish what it referred to as a "falsified audio clip," claiming that content such as this undermines the BBC's journalistic integrity.

"The illegitimate, fascist regime of Yunus has intentionally crafted this narrative as an instrument of political expediency. We had hoped that a universally recognized institution like the BBC would not be caught up in the trap laid by such malevolent forces. Unfortunately, not so," the party concluded.