BNP adamant to rally at Naya Paltan

Amid a tense situation and speculations over BNP’s December 10 rally, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday said they will hold their rally at Nayapaltan on Saturday as planned earlier.

He announced the party decision at a press conference at BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office this afternoon.

BNP took the decision a day after a fierce clash between their party activists and police and police action in front of the party’s Nayapaltan central office on Wednesday that left one killed and over 50 injured.

“Wait to see what will happen in Dhaka, people have started waking up,” he said responding to a question from reporters.

The government must remove all barriers to holding BNP’s December-10 divisional rally in Dhaka peacefully. “Otherwise, the government has to bear all the responsibilities (if anything bad happens).”

“It is the government’s responsibility to ensure the rally is held peacefully. We will consider if the government offers a suitable alternative venue,” he said.

He also demanded the government to reopen the BNP office and withdraw police from the area immediately.

He said their new action programmes will be announced next week to realise their demands, including the resignation of the government, dissolution of parliament and reestablishment of the caretaker government.

“Police attacked BNP leaders and activists without any provocation. Such cowardly attack is unimaginable. Police unwarrantedly entered BNP office with bombs in a cement bag,” said Fakhrul.

He said Wednesday’s police attack was tantamount to putting the last nail in the coffin of democracy.

Police vandalised furniture and valuable of the office and took away important documents of the party, he alleged.

He said that police members kept the bombs and staged the drama. “Then police claimed they recovered huge explosives from BNP office and declared the area crime scene.” He said their party sought permission for holding the rally at Nayapaltan, but police gave permission to hold it at Suhrawardy Udyan which was in no way acceptable to BNP.

DMP police commissioner phoned BNP leader Shaheeduddin Chowdury Anne to talk about alternative venue, but he was arrested when came to the DMP office, said Fakhrul.