Protesting the arrest of party chairperson’s adviser and senior journalist Shawkat Mahmud, BNP on Tuesday alleged that its leaders and activists are being subjected to government’s political reprisal.
“The way DB police have arrested our party chairperson’s adviser and journalist leader Shawkat Mahmud, we denounce it,” said party spokesman Asaduzzaman Ripon.Earlier in the day, plainclothes police arrested Shawkat Mahmud, also the president of a faction of Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ), as he came to join a programme of pro-BNP professionals’ electoral platform Adarsha Dhaka Andolan at Samarai Convention Centre around 11:15am.
Addressing a press briefing at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office, the BNP spokesman said, “We’ve repeatedly been saying our leaders and activists are being made victims to government’s political vengeance. They’re being sent to jails in false cases.”
Ripon also alleged that their party men across the country even cannot move freely and stay in their houses due to the government’s continued repressive acts.
He urged the government to shun its political vengeance and repressive acts and restore a healthy political practice in the country.
Referring to jailing of BNP standing committee member MK Anwar by a lower court, Ripon said the court could have been kind to the veteran BNP leader considering his age, health condition and social status.
A Comilla court sent MK Anwar to jail rejecting his bail petition in a case filed in connection with a petrol bomb attack on a bus in Chouddogram upazila on February 3 last.
He said their leaders and activists are being sent to jail whenever they are surrendering before court in political cases.
Mentioning that BNP central committee member and Chandpur district BNP president Sheikh Fariduddin Manik was also sent to jail after he surrendered before a court, Ripon said their party could have been happy and more respectful to the judiciary if the BNP leaders had been given bails in political cases as now there is no political tension in the country. “We expect justice from the judiciary,” he added.
The BNP spokesman urged the judges to be kind towards their ailing party leaders, including party joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, so that they can get better treatment coming out of jail on bail. “The path of justice will be widened if they (judges) give our leaders bails on health ground.”
He also urged the government to release the arrested BNP leaders and activists for creating a congenial political atmosphere in the country.- UNB
