Dhaka, March 12 -- A faction of the Bangladesh Students' Union and the Socialist Students Front have condemned the inclusion of convicted war criminals in a condolence motion during the first session of the 13th Parliament.

In a joint statement on Thursday, Mahir Shahriar Reza and Bahauddin Shubho, president and general secretary of a faction of Bangladesh Students' Union, said the motion amounted to a "betrayal" of the three million martyrs of the 1971 Liberation War.

They criticised the move, saying that instead of honouring those killed in the war, the parliament honoured the perpetrators.

The leaders alleged that the BNP had agreed to the move despite claiming to represent pro-Liberation War forces.

According to the statement, the...