BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday alleged that filing cases against opposition leaders and activists and arresting them are the biggest weapons of the Awami League government to suppress its political opponents. Speaking at a rally, he also warned that people’s legitimate movement can never be suppressed by using any weapon. “The Awami League government very successfully used the state machinery, including police, Rab and other forces, to terrify people. Their biggest weapons are filing cases and arresting BNP leaders and activists to subdue its opponents,” the BNP leader said. He alleged that the government picks up the dissidents using law enforcers and puts them in jail to thwart a democratic movement. Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal arranged the rally in front of BNP’s Nayapaltan central office demanding the immediate release of its general secretary Abdul Monayem Munna and its Dhaka North City unit former president SM Jahangir Hossain, who were arrested from the city’s Malibagh area last week. Fakhrul said many BNP leaders and activists were made disappeared, tortured, maimed and killed while 35 lakh others were made accused in different ‘false’ cases. “But the government could not subdue BNP and foil its movement. I would like to ask Awami League to take a lesson that people’s justified movement can’t be blocked by using any weapon. No one also could do it in the past.” He recalled that no powerful rulers, including Hitler, Mussolini and Ayub Khan, could stay in power against the will of the people. “We repeatedly told the government that they could not realise the eye-langue of people and the wall writings. Please, try to understand it.” He said people are struggling to cope with the unusual price hikes in power, gas and daily essentials. “We don’t know what happen in the future as Ramada is forthcoming.” Amid such a situation, the BNP leader alleged that the government is importing electricity from India's Adani Group at almost double the price. “When the country’s people and we’re strongly demanding cancellation of the deal, they imported 50mw power from the company. How much audacity and mockery it is! They have done it ignoring people as they have given an undertaking (to Adani).” He said the current government has destroyed all the achievements of the country and its people. He also alleged that the ruling party leaders and activists are indulging in widespread corruption in the name of mega projects. “When 42% of people are living below the poverty line and when people can’t afford rice, oil, other commodities and tuition fees of their children, the government is destroying the country by taking such mega projects and indulging in massive corruption. “ Fakhrul alleged that most of the banks have got depleted through the plundering by the ruling party. He called upon the BNP leaders and activists to be more organised to oust the current government by intensifying their ongoing movement.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday claimed that two leaders of their party’s student wing Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal were killed and over 100 others injured in an attack by police when bullets were fired in front of their party’s Nayapaltan central office. Besides, he said, around 600 BNP leaders and activists, including party's senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Dhaka south city unit convener Abdus Salam and north city unit convene Amanullah Aman, were ‘brutely" arrested from the party office and the Nayapaltan area during a police raid. Fakhrul, who took position on the footpath in front of the BNP office around 4:40pm after failing to enter the office during a police raid, talked to reporters before leaving the area around 8pm. The BNP leader was seen sitting on the footpath in front of the BNP office dejectedly while watching helplessly how other party leaders were being arrested from inside the office. Fakhrul said like any other day, their party leaders and activists gathered at Nayapaltan in front of the party office peacefully. “But a huge number of police attacked them without any provocation. They lobbed teargas shells, charged batons, fired rubber bullets and bullets, killing our two student leaders on the spot.” He said the two student leaders were pronounced dead when they were taken to the hospital. However, party sources said only a Chhatra Dal leader was killed and another is still alive till the filing of the story around 9:30pn Besides, Fakhrul said over  100 BNP leaders and activists were injured in the police action. Later, he said the different units of law enforcers started raiding the BNP office. “At the same time, I came here and told them I would go to the office. But I was forced to stay here. Then, they entered the office and heinously repressed our leaders and activists and arrested over 600 leaders and activists.” Fakhrul said during the around five-hour drive they vandalised the CCTVs installed at the office and seized all the computers and important documents of the party. “The most heinous act they committed was to take some explosives in bags by themselves and keep them inside our office,” he claimed. The BNP leader said their party is a democratic party which believes in carrying out the movement and holding their programmes peacefully. Read more: 1 killed in police-BNP clash at Nayapaltan; Over 150 leaders, activists held He said their party has already held nine divisional rallies in a peaceful manner, ignoring various obstacles and provocation. Fakhrul said the ruling party leaders and the ministers have started making provocative comments from the very beginning over the Dhaka rally. He said even the ruling party top leaders threatened to wipe out BNP like Hefajat. “Following these dreadful comments we were fearing that they were making any blueprint to suppress people’s justified, democratic and peaceful movement using the state machinery as they did during 2013 and 2014.” Terming the police action tragic and awful, the BNP leader said it not only affected BNP but also the people of the entire Bangladesh. “They  also attacked democracy as they in a planned way carried out the incident to ruin the process of restoring democratic system and removing fascism.” Read more: Govt has staged the Nayapaltan clash to foil Dec 10 rally: Mirza Fakhrul He said the law enforcers ran rampant like the Pakistani invasion force of 1971. “We can’t imagine that any police force in a civilised country can act like that.” Fakhrul said the police authorities were supposed to give BNP a reply about the permission for their rally venue on Wednesday. “Instead of doing that, they annihilated democracy again with their dangerous, tragic and heinous drive.” He warned that the country’s people will not accept such repressive and suppressive acts. “They must put up strong resistance and defeat the autocratic and fascist regime. Replying to a question about whether BNP would hold the rally on December 10 under the evolving situation, Fakhrul said their standing committee sat in a meeting at night. “We’ll let you know the decision of our standing committee’s meeting.”  

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam on Saturday said the government’s “threats” will not work anymore, as people will not return home until their victory is ensured in the movement for the restoration of their voting rights. Speaking at the party’s divisional rally in Sylhet, he also said the next election must be held under a non-partisan caretaker government and warned that those who oppose this election system will turn into “public enemies”. “The prime minister has issued a threat that we’ll face the fate of Hefajat if we try to wage a movement. We would like to say that people have woken up this time. So, these threats won’t work this time. People who have taken to the streets, won’t return home without realising their demands,” Fakhrul said. The BNP leader said their party’s main goal is to restore people’s rights that “have been lost, including the right to vote.” “We’ll establish a government of people through people’s votes…our movement can’t be stopped by opening fire and gunning down our leaders and activists.” Referring to the ruling party leaders’ remarks that the election will be held as per the constitution, he said their party (BNP) does not accept the charter that was amended by the current government. Referring to the events of 2011 leading up to the 15th amendment to the constitution, Fakhrul said that the government had annulled the caretaker government system using the judiciary, creating a scope for holding elections under a partisan government. Fakhrul said the caretaker government that was included in the constitution by Khaleda Zia, must be restored to ensure a credible national election. “No election will be held in Bangladesh without the caretaker government.” He said the restoration of the caretaker government system is the only way to resolve the country’s political crisis.

BNP on Saturday alleged that the government has unleashed a fascist and repressive rule in the country by shutting down all the avenues of justice for people. In a statement, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, “The illegal regime that usurped the state power is now repressing people like a fascist.  In this case, enforced disappearance and extrajudicial killing are the main weapons of the ruling quarter.” He also said people belonging to opposition parties, including BNP, are being killed selectively in the name of different drives across the country. “All the avenues of justice for people have been closed in the country.” The statement was issued on the occasion of the United Nations’ International Day in Support of Victims of Torture to be observed across the country on Sunday. Read: AL govt has become enemy of people: Fakhrul Fakhrul said the government has imposed the one-party misrule on the country since it has no accountability to people.  “Evil attempts are being made to regulate the media through intimidation and threats. “Freedom of the press is now completely at stake,” he said. Stating that the country is going through a tough time, the BNP leader said political leaders, human rights activists, political analysts who are vocal in favour of democracy are being subjected to oppression, enforced disappearance and killing. He said the government has continued filing 'false' cases against BNP leaders and activists and dissidents and arresting them. “All the achievements and progress of the nation are now being lost in the darkness. Democracy is being hit the hardest by the continuance of oppression. We have to remove this anarchy,” Fakhrul said. Read: Padma Bridge symbol of Bangladesh’s “economic strength, confidence” He alleged that BNP chairperson and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia has been kept under house arrest by convicting her in completely untrue and fabricated cases out of the government’s vengeance. “Despite the fact that our leader is very ill, the government is not giving her any scope to go abroad for proper such treatment. Her life has been put in danger for lack of advanced treatment,” the BNP leader said. He urged the democracy-loving people of the country to get united and put up a resistance against all forms of oppression.    

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday alleged that many activities of Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal have no link with the constitution and ethics.  “He (Kamal) proposed legalising the laundered money. His (Finance Minister's) own firm has long been involved in manpower business…he is doing many things that have no connection with the constitution and ethics,” Fakhrul said. Talking to reporters at his local residence, the BNP leader also alleged that the ruling party itself has siphoned off money abroad and it is now legalising that illegal money.  “Bangladesh is now no longer a civilised and democratic country. They (AL) have turned it into a barbaric, uncivilised and failed state,” he observed.  About the Cumilla polls, Fakhrul said people had an expectation that the Election Commission would try to exert its power to free the election from the ruling party and the government’s influence. “But it’s unfortunate that a ruling party MP didn’t leave the election area even after receiving a letter from the Election Commission. “This has demonstrated the helplessness of the entire Election Commission, including the Chief Election Commissioner,” he said. The BNP leader said the ruling party MP stayed in the election area violating the EC’s instruction at the behest of the government. “This incident has proved that not only the Cumilla city election, but the entire election system in Bangladesh has been taken under the control of the government.” Earlier on June 8, the EC ordered local Awami League President AKM Bahauddin Bahar MP to leave electoral areas under Cumilla City Corporation for allegedly violating the electoral code of conduct ahead of the polls. However, Bahar, a ruling party MP from Cumilla-6 seat, did not comply with the EC’s order. He alleged that the government has destroyed the Election Commission like other state institutions. “That’s why not only us, but all the opposition parties are saying that it is not possible to have a fair election under any Election Commission without a polls-time neutral government,” the BNP leader said.  Fakhrul said the ex-election commissioners also at a meeting recently said a free and fair election is not possible under a partisan government in Bangladesh due to the prevailing electoral culture of the country.  “So, a neutral government during elections is very much needed in Bangladesh. BNP will not go to any election under the present government, no matter what,” he said.  The BNP leader said their party is now holding talks with different political parties to wage a strong movement to ensure a credible election under a non-party government.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday alleged that the government is conspiring to 'kill' their party’s ‘critically ill chairperson Khaleda Zia slowly by not allowing her to go abroad for advanced treatment.“We want you (govt) to let her (Khaleda) go abroad for treatment. It’s a minimum demand. It’s not a matter of kindness, magnanimity and humanity as it’s her civic right. You’re saying she's a convicted person.  A convicted person is a citizen of the country who has the civic right,” he said.Speaking at a human-chain programme, the BNP leader said the country’s most political parties, various organisations and intellectuals have long been urging the government to give her a scope for treatment outside the country. READ: 23 noted citizens urge govt to let Khaleda go abroad for treatment “But our leader Begum Khaleda Zia is being killed slowly very consciously by convicting her in false cases. The world knows it,” he said.Fakhrul warned that people have started waking up and they will oust the government through a strong mass upsurge if anything bad happens to Khaleda for lack of treatment abroad.  Jatiyatabadi Krishak Dal arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club, demanding the BNP chief’s treatment abroad.About Khaleda’s health condition, Fakhrul said she is bleeding and if it continues for a long time she will not survive."You all know she (Khaleda) has been suffering from liver cirrhosis. “This s a very critical disease. There’s no such treatment for this disease in our country. This disease is treated better only in the United States, the UK and Germany,” he said.The BNP leader said Khaleda has been fighting for life every moment at Evercare Hospital. “Under such a situation, we've to play a big role. We must wake up and establish justice, fairness, and a democratic government and free our leader Khaleda Zia."He urged all to pray for the recovery of the BNP chief on this holy day of Juma’.Khaleda, a 76-year-old former prime minister, has been receiving treatment at Evercare Hospital for various health complications since November 13.Her medical board members said Khaleda immediately needs to go abroad for better treatment as she was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis. READ: Khaleda’s treatment not possible in Bangladesh with foreign doctors: DAB On behalf of her family, Khaleda's younger brother, Shamim Iskander, submitted an application to the Home Ministry on November 11 urging the government to allow her to go abroad for better treatment.However, Law Minister Anisul Huq said the government will consider Khaleda Zia’s appeal if she submits a fresh petition after returning to jail.