British legal expert Lord Alex Carlile has dismissed allegations of lobbying for the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh.
Lord Carlile came up with the statement on Friday amid sharp reactions from some leaders of ruling Awami League.
Recently BNP announced to hire the British lawyer to advise the party chief’s legal team.
Later, he drew reactions as he had criticised Bangladesh’s judicial system for awarding death penalty to Jamaat leaders for 1971 war crimes.
Some AL leaders said Lord Carlile ‘misused his office’ as a representative of British people to provide legal help to Jamaat. "Now he is doing the same for Khaleda, they alleged.
Without mentioning any name, Lord Carlile on Friday said, the remarks are ‘defamatory’, reports bdnews24.com.
“My engagement with Begum Zia's team of lawyers team is a professional one and giving her legal advice does not in any way contradict my position as a member of the House of Lords,” the statement reads.
On his comments over the war crimes trial, Carlile said that as an international lawyer, he made those observations about the procedures of the tribunal in relation to international standards.
“The allegation made against me, and that I acted as a lawyer and lobbyist of Jamaat-e-Islam is untrue and would be subject to libel action,” Carlile said.
Urging “everyone” not to make statements that interfere with Khaleda’s case in future, Carlile said he will have no option other than taking legal action.
