Main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Monday alleged that the party was facing obstacles in providing relief to flood-hit people.
‘Ruling Awami League leaders and activists and the police are creating obstacles to the BNP in different parts of the country while it is holding meetings or arranging relief for flood victims,’ BNP standing committee member Iqbal Hasan Mahmud told a press conference at the BNP chair’s Gulshan office in the capital.
The BNP’s National Relief Committee organised the press conference.
Iqbal said that the government was busy with the Padma Bridge while people of large parts of the country were affected by flood and were living a subhuman life.
‘Despite being an opposition party, we are taking relief to flood-hit people with our limited resources, but there are also obstacles for us. Even Section 144 is being imposed at places by the administration,’ he added.
He said that while people in various parts of the country, especially in Sylhet, Mymensingh and Rangpur divisions, are passing their days in a subhuman condition and the government assistance for the flood victims is very inadequate, everyone must rise above politics and come forward in the service of humanity.
The BNP, as a people’s party, has already stood by flood-hit people all over the country, including Sylhet, Sunamganj, Feni, Netrakona and Kurigram, he said.
‘But, unfortunately, ruling party people, especially Awami League, Juba League and Chhatra League activists, carried out a surprise attack on our relief meeting in Fulgazi of Feni with sticks and firearms without provocation,’ Iqbal said.
He complained that 20 leaders and activists were injured in that attack.
‘On their way to the nearby hospital, Awami terrorists attacked them again,’ he said, adding that despite the presence of the Fulgazi police station near the spot, it did not intervene in time.
Claiming that people in the flood-hit areas are suffering starvation, Iqbal said that they were falling sick with various diseases but were not getting treatment.
‘Instead of the government providing them with relief, the police are foiling the BNP’s efforts to collect relief materials from people for flood victims,’ he added.
