Threats of underworld loom large ahead of elections

Syed Shemul Parvez :
People of Bangladesh, including the residents of the capital city, are in a state of serious panic as the ongoing political impasse centering the upcoming parliamentary polls is intensifying amid emergence of huge illegal firearms in the hands of notorious criminals across the country.

Besides, top terrorists those who are in the jail or aboard are trying to create the panic among the common people creating outrage ahead of the Election.

A huge number of illegal arms have been seized recently in various drives by the law enforcers.

According to the RAB, at least 495 firearms, 68 magazines, 1032 ammunition, and 1944 explosives have been seized by the elite force in the last 8 months of the year.

Commenting on the situation, a trader of the old town Setu Miah told The New Nation that we don’t know what is going to happen in near future as both the major parties have announced their massive counter political programmes centering the polls.

Actually we have bitter experience from the Covid-19 pandemic. We are still fighting to restore the previous business. But if we face another anarchy centering the election, we have nothing to survive, he added.

A 52-year-old lawyer Bhuban Chandra Shil who sustained injuries during an indiscriminate firing by a group of terrorists on a road in Dhaka’s Tejgaon area, died recently.

During the shooting incident, three people, including a top criminal Tariq Saeed Mamun, were also injured.

Sources concerned said after this fatal incident the names of some top terrorists surfaced in the media. And it is being apprehended that criminal activities would increase to a great extent in the run up to the the next election.

Besides, the elite force RAB has recently arrested a top drug and firearms trader from the Katakhali area of Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar along with 55,000 pieces of yaba pill, one foreign pistol, one Bangladeshi firearm, and ammunition.

The arrestee has been identified as Zafarul Islam alias
Babul Member, 42. Zafarul Islam alias Babul Member was arrested by members of RAB-15 during a raid based on secret information.

In this regard, Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) newly appointed Commissioner Habibur Rahman said it is important to stop the trading of illegal arms ahead of elections.

The criminals, who are released from jail on bail, have been ordered to undergo strict monitoring. Whether the criminal is small or big, no one is spared, he added.

Regarding the release of criminals from jail on bail, Commander Khandaker Al Moin, director of the legal and media wing of Rab, told The New Nation that actually we don’t get the proper update about criminals including militants, who released from jail on bail.

But we generally carryout surveillance on the top terrorists those who live at home and aboard.

And most of the intelligence department including RAB starts working to trace the location, movements, and others activities of the criminals who recently got released from jail on bail, RAB officials added.

Dr. Tawohidul Haque, Associate Professor, Institute of Social Welfare and Research, University of Dhaka and also a criminologist, told The New Nation that the panic of top terrorists who get released from jail on bail marking the upcoming national election is very common phenomena of Bangladesh culture.

Both the ruling and opposite parties normally try to show their supremacy among the people ahead of general election through violence.

If the law enforcement agencies don’t take proper steps to curb the outrage on time, we have to face more dangerous situation during the election, Dr. Tawohidul Haque added.

It is mentionable that a government crackdown on the opposition party ahead of any major rally centering the national election sparks concerns at home and abroad.

Thousands of cases had been filed in recent months against leaders and supporters of opposition parties.

“The police are indiscriminately arresting people, “They are arresting people just to harass and put pressure on the politicians.”

According to the BNP, over 300,000 of its leaders and activists have been implicated in “false and fabricated” cases. The allegations are often broad and vague.