BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Tuesday accused the interim government of playing "hide and seek" over the arrest of cabinet members from Sheikh Hasina’s government, who have committed crimes.

“Why are you playing such hide and seek over the arrest and detention of the ministers of Sheikh Hasina’s regime, who committed crimes and injustices?” he said.

The BNP leader said they first heard that the former foreign minister was arrested and later heard that he was roaming at Jackson Heights in the USA.

He was addressing a programme arranged in front of Bahadur Shah Park in the old city by Dhaka south city unit BNP to distribute leaflets for raising public awareness to prevent dengue.

BNP warns of conspiracies, urges vigilance

Rizvi also said they first heard that former state minister for information Mohammad Ali Arafat was arrested but two-three days later heard that he was not arrested. “Why are you deceiving the people? Why are you playing this hide and seek? That is what the people want to know,” he said.

The BNP leader also criticised the delay in withdrawal of false cases filed against BNP acting Chairman Tarique Rahman saying that this delay is a part of the blue print of allies of Awami League.

He said even Moinuddin-Fakhruddin (during the 2007-08 caretaker govt) could not implicate Tarique Rahman’s name in the August 21 grenade attack case.

“This case was out of Sheikh Hasina's political vendetta. Why is the case against him still not being withdrawn? The people of the country want to know its reasons,” Rizvi questioned.

About the dismissing of trainee sub-inspectors (SIs) of the 40th outside cadet batch at Sarda Police Academy in Rajshahi, the BNP leader said some 252 police officers, who were appointed during Sheikh Hasina's tenure, have been dropped, though it was supposed to drop 803 officers there.

Dhaka south city BNP convener Rafiqul Alam Majnu and member secretary Tanvir Ahmed, among others, were present.