BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday alleged that the government and its ministers are making a fun of people with their bizarre comments about the price hike of daily essentials.

“The way the prices of rice, pulses, oil, salt, sugar and other commodities have gone up, the lower- and middle-income group of people are not only struggling but also becoming helpless,” he said.

Read: Draft regulations on digital media going to suppress people’s voice: BNP

Talking to reporters at his local residence, the BNP leader also said common people already have their backs against the wall due to the government’s indifference to control the overheated market of essential items.

“The ministers responsible for controlling the market are making ridiculous and weird comments. They’re joking with people about the rise in prices of essential commodities,” Fakhrul said.

He slammed the ministers for what he said blaming BNP for the skyrocketing prices of essentials asking the government to quit shouldering the responsibility for its failure to control the market.

“If BNP can control the prices of essentials, then why are you (AL) in government? You should resign and hand over power to BNP to see how to control the prices of goods,” he said.

The BP leader also said the ministers are making absurd comments about the price hike to mislead people and hush up their failures.

“I don’t want to mention the name of a minister who said I’m involved with businessmen. It’s a funny remark. I’ve never been involved in the business as teaching was my profession,” he said.

He said the government has been trying to suppress the freedom of expression of its opponents and dissenting voices by using the state machinery and the Digital Security Act.

Fakhrul alleged that now the government has drafted two policies--The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission Regulation for Digital, Social Media, and OTT Platforms, Policy, 2021 and Over the Top (OTT) Content-Based Service Delivery and Management and Advertising Policy 2021--to prevent campaigns against its corruption, misrule.

Read: AL leaders ‘get share’ from market manipulators: BNP

“These are repressive policies and the freedom of expression will be completely hampered if those are enforced,” he observed.

Asked whether their party will extend support to Left Democratic Alliance’s hartal on March 28 , Fakhrul said BNP standing committee will decide it at its virtual meeting on Monday.

He said the government has once again manifested its knee-jerk policy over the war between Russia and Ukraine. “The government could not make its stance clear, and it even didn’t issue a statement about the war. BNP is always against aggression. We oppose aggression in any country.”