4,000 BNP men arrested after announcement of election schedule: Rizvi
Staff Reporter :
The main opposition party-BNP on Friday accused the government of creating a sanctuary of terrorism in the country for cling to power through lopsided polls again.
“The government created a sanctuary of terrorism across the country comprising their party’s terrorists only for conducting another lopsided polls for cling to power.
The ruling party miscreants have blasted a number of cocktails in former Sylhet city mayor Ariful Haque Chowdhury’s home as part of their countrywide terror acts,” BNP Senior Joint-Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said through a statement condemning the incident.
He said the government has again started the arrest spree, forced disappearances and killing as part of their heinous plan of conducting another voter less election.
Later in a press briefing Rizvi has alleged that more than 3,875 BNP leaders and workers have been arrested illegally since the announcement of the schedule for the 12th national elections.
At least three activists have died during this period, he claimed during a virtual press conference on Friday.
The BNP leader said that since the announcement of the schedule on 15 November, 125 cases have been filed across the country against BNP leaders and activists.
More than 14,690 activists have been accused in these cases.
More than 3,875 activists have been arrested in these cases.
Apart from these, three people have died and 537 were injured in the attacks by law enforcement forces and leaders and activists of the ruling party since the election schedule was announced.
Meanwhile, 290 activists were arrested across the country in the last 24 hours and one person was killed, he added.
Rizvi said that 18,871 leaders and workers of the party have been arrested since 28 July after the party started simultaneous movement to overthrow the government. Cases have been filed against 68,803 BNP men and 16 people died including a journalist.
Since the announcement of the polls schedule, BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and some other political parties were observing strikes and blockades across the country.
