Most senior leaders of the BNP-led 18 Party Alliance have gone into hiding after the arrest of BNP stalwarts on Friday night. The police also carried out raids at homes of a number of senior leaders, including acting secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, following the detention of the BNP bigwigs. The 18 Party Alliance leaders have left their homesto take shelter at undisclosed locations to avoid arrest ahead of the 84-hour hartal beginning from 6 am on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the BNP headquarters at Naya Paltan wore a deserted look as the party rank and file drove underground to escape arrest. A large police contingent has cordoned off the BNP headquarters since Friday night.
Senior BNP leaders, excepting Brig-Gen (retd) ASM Hannan Shah, Dr Abdul Moin Khan, and Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, were not available on phone.
Talking to The Independent Hannan Shah admitted that the party’s senior leaders were not staying in their homes to avoid police harassment.
He, however, claimed that the resolve of the grassroots level leaders and workers had grown stronger due to the government’s repressive tactics. “You will witness their resolve during the nationwide hartal beginning on Sunday,” he stated.
The BNP leader alleged that the government was trying to put them in a tight corner, in different ways, ahead of the upcoming elections.
Abdul Moin Khan said the democratic forces in the country have condemned the arrest of their leaders, and the people did not accept it.
“The arrest of the BNP leaders has not interrupted the party activities, it will rather strengthen our movement,” he said.
The BNP leader also warned that the government would be held responsible if its machinery tries to create chaos and anarchy over the hartal.
The police on Friday night arrested BNP standing committee members—barrister Moudud Ahmed, MK Anwar and Barrister Rafiqul Islam Miah, BNP chairperson’s adviser Abdul Awal Mintoo, and special assistant Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas.
The police also raided and searched the homes of Mirza Abbas, Goyeshwar Chandra Roy, barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon, opposition chief whip Zainul Abdin Farroque, Sadeque Hossain Khoka, Abdus Salam, Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie, MP, barrister Nasir Uddin Asim Ukil, Juba Dal president Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal, and Dhaka district BNP president Abdul Mannan, according to party sources.
-With The Independent input
