The controversial list has also been removed from the ministry website.
“The fresh list will be published on March 26 next after scrutiny,” Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque told UNB over phone on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said no freedom fighter will be there in the list of Razakars as the recently disclosed list is no way that of the collaborators of Pakistani occupation forces.
“I want to say unequivocally that no freedom fighter will be labelled as Razakar. It won’t happen…it's impossible…it won’t occur at least during my tenure,” she said adding that the list of Razakars will be scrutinised further.
The Prime Minister said this while delivering her opening speech at the meeting of Bangladesh Awami League Central Working Committee at her official residence Ganobhaban.
Sheikh Hasina urged the aggrieved families of freedom fighters to see the matter with compassion and forgiveness.
“I would like tell those who got hurt to be calm and see the matter with forgiveness…they [freedom fighters] can never be there in the list of Razakars…they can rest assured,” she said.
On Tuesday, the Liberation War Affairs Minister said his ministry did not prepare any list. “The list was published as it was received from the Home Ministry,” he had said.
While speaking at a programme in Manikganj on Wednesday, he alleged that the BNP-Jamaat clique which was in power for 25-30 years might have manipulated papers kept in the Home Ministry.
Meanwhile, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Tuesday said the Liberation War Affairs Ministry should have properly scrutinised the list of Razakars before publishing it. On Wednesday, he said they did not provide the list of Razakars, Al-Badrs and Al-Shams. “We handed over the list of those had been accused under the Dalal Act to the Liberation War Affairs Ministry.”
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has directed for amending the list of Razakars soon. “The Prime Minister has directed the Liberation War Affairs Ministry and Home Ministry to amend the list and the Liberation War Affairs Ministry has already offered apology,” he said.
The Ministry of Liberation War Affairs on Sunday published a list of 10,789 Razakars who had collaborated with the Pakistani occupation forces during the War of Liberation in 1971.
But the official list drew huge criticisms as the names of several freedom fighters are on it.
The name of International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) chief prosecutor Golam Arif Tipu has also appeared on the list.
In serial 89 of Rajshahi division (overall 606), there are names of five people, including Arif. The four others are advocate Mohsin Ali, advocate Abdus Salam, then deputy commissioner of Rajshahi Abdur Rouf and then police officer SM Abu Taleb.
The name of a Language Movement veteran and war-wounded freedom fighter from Barishal among others is also there.
Besides, 26 Hindu community members and six women were mentioned as Razakars in the list which contains names of around 1,000 collaborators from Barishal.