The workers are concerned about the arrest of the top leaders of the BNP
The leaders and workers of the party are concerned about the consecutive arrests of the top local leaders of the BNP. In order to avoid further arrests, almost all the leaders of the party are now keeping a low profile. This has also raised concerns within the party about the future course of action for the upcoming movement. In particular, the arrest of Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, a prominent member of the permanent committee of the party after the Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, has deeply worried the leaders and workers of the BNP. Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury is the head of the BNP's international affairs committee and he was responsible for maintaining communication with the outside world on behalf of the party. The leaders believe that his arrest will hinder this communication and create obstacles for the party.
The arrest of Jahir Uddin Swapna, the head of BNP's media cell, is also causing concern among party leaders and workers. Jahir Uddin is involved in intelligence-based activities. The rapid arrest of party leaders and workers in the case of the incident on October 28, similar to Jahir Uddin, is also being considered. He was appointed as the coordinator of the media cell several years ago. Under Jahir Uddin's leadership, the media cell has become quite active through social media, including Facebook, in a short period of time. After analyzing the situation, many party leaders and workers argue that the arrests of Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and Jahir Uddin Swapna are significant. One has been arrested for disrupting BNP's international communication; the other's arrest is aimed at curbing the promotion of BNP's movement and agenda through mass media, including social media.
BNP leaders Amir Khasru and Jahir Uddin have been remanded for a period of six days.
BNP leaders Amir Khasru and Jahir Uddin have been remanded for a period of six days.
Apart from Amir Khasru and Jahir Uddin, several central leaders of the BNP, including Mirza Abbas, a member of the party's permanent committee, Syed Moazzem Hossain, Majibur Rahman Sarwar, and Khairul Kabir, as well as organizational editor Ruhul Kuddus Talukdar, have been arrested. In addition, in the past two days, the police have arrested several influential leaders and members, including conveners and general secretaries of at least 20 districts of the North and South BNP in Dhaka. In this situation, doubts have been raised about the government's strategy to suppress the 'One Demand' movement. However, yesterday morning, in a statement, BNP's senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said that no tactic of the government will be successful in suppressing the movement. The leadership of the BNP cannot be weakened.
The government is attempting to suppress the opposition movement by arresting not only the top leaders but also the grassroots leaders and workers, according to allegations made by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Party sources responsible for the matter state that within the past 24 hours (until yesterday evening), more than 292 leaders and workers of the BNP and its affiliated organizations have been arrested across the country. During this time, more than 1,045 leaders and workers have been implicated in 11 cases.
The Awami League government will ensure the uninterrupted continuation of the arrest campaign.
During a virtual press conference on Friday afternoon, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi stated that the movement of 'Ekdafa' will continue until victory is achieved. Referring to the peaceful 48-hour blockade scheduled to begin from early morning on the upcoming Tuesday, he mentioned that they will adhere to the blockade without giving in to any provocation from the government.
The government has launched an innovative initiative called 'Abhinav Mission' to exclude the BNP from the upcoming one-sided election in the country, according to Rezbi. He claims that the Awami League has targeted nearly two crore people for benefits within the framework of social welfare through the use of cards. Awami League parliament members and leaders are organizing gatherings with these beneficiaries, with even administrative officials present. Instructions have been given to cast votes by boat in the upcoming parliamentary election for those attending these gatherings, and a threat of card cancellation has been issued for those who do not go to the polling centers. The BNP has alleged that such tactics have been employed to show voter presence, according to their complaint.