Police swoop down on BNP activists, 20 injured

Police swoop down on BNP activists, 20 injured

Gazipur, Jan 29 (Just News): At least 20 activists of main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) were injured after police all of a sudden swooped down on them while they were emerging from a joint meeting in Gazipur on Sunday.

Gazipur district BNP held the joint meeting at a community centre in the district town. Police arrested 15 activists from the spot as well.

Police, however, claimed that the law enforcement took “necessary action” when rival groups of BNP locked into clashes with each other.

The injured BNP activists include district BNP information affairs secretary Md Nahin Mamtazi, 45, Gazipur municipality BNP organising secretary Joynal Abedin, and Sripur upazila Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal president Md Saiful Islam Mollah, 28.

Talking to Prothom Alo, Gazipur district BNP joint secretary Md Mazharul Alam said the district BNP held its joint meeting at Madhyachhayabithi Trust Community Centre and police surrounded the community centre shortly after they began the meeting.

The BNP leader said, sensing that the law enforcers had surrounded the centre, they cut the proceedings of the meeting.

“Police swooped down on BNP activists and charged them with batons when they were coming out of the community centre around 1:00pm. At least 20 activists were injured in the police attack,” said the BNP leader.
He said the police launched the attack on the opposition activists at a time when the BNP activists were forging unity ahead of the verdict of a case against BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, ostensibly to demoralise the activists.

Gazipur district’s additional police super Md Rasel Sheikh said BNP was holding the meeting without permission. “Police took necessary steps to bring the situation under control when two rival groups of the party clashed with each other.”

Gazipur district BNP president AKM Fazlul Haque, however, denied the police claim that the BNP rival rival groups clashed with each other.

“The claim is totally unfounded and ill-motivated. Police are making such claims only to hide its brazen attack on the opposition activists,” alleged the BNP leader.

(Justnews/ys/0020)