The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party said on Friday that the Awami League government would be forced to step down from power through tougher street movements across the country.
BNP leaders urged party leaders and activists to get ready for an all-out movement to oust the Sheikh Hasina government and hold the next election under a non-partisan government.
The BNP leaders came up with the warning and the call at two separate rallies held in the capital’s Jatrabari and Abdullahpur on Friday, marking the third day of the party’s ongoing 15-day movement to press their one-point demand for the resignation of the government and the release of party chairperson Khaleda Zia.
Addressing the rally at Abdullahpur in Uttara, arranged by BNP Dhaka city north, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir referred to the European Union mentioning that there was no election environment in Bangladesh.
Mirza Fakhrul said that the election commission was saying that the EU would not send an observation mission due to budget constraints, but that was not true because the EU clearly said that the environment in Bangladesh was not conducive to observing elections.
‘We have nothing to lose. We are on the streets along with the people and holding processions; road march programmes and tougher movements will be coming soon,’ he said.
‘Our word is clear. Sheikh Hasina must resign, and elections will have to be held under a non-partisan government through the formation of a new election commission,’ he said.
Expressing concern over Khaleda’s health condition, he said that the BNP chief was fighting for her life.
‘If the government does not allow sending her abroad for treatment, it will have to be responsible for the consequences,’ he said.
Mirza Fakhrul gave an example of sending jailed people abroad for treatment in the past, saying that prime minister Sheikh Hasina was also treated in the USA during the Army-backed government due to her ear problem.
He said that the government did not allow anyone to vote in the past two elections.
‘When all the democratic countries of the world want fair elections under a non-partisan government, the government is ignoring it, showing the excuse of the constitution,’ he said.
The BNP leader alleged that the government was not allowing granting bail to their party people in the ‘false’ cases and was speeding up the trial proceedings to convict probable candidates of the BNP so that they could not participate in the upcoming election.
Addressing the Jatrabari rally, arranged by BNP Dhaka south unit, BNP standing committee member Mirza Abbas said that BNP would launch such a movement that would destroy the power of the ‘illegal’ government.
‘The government has put several lakh BNP leaders and activists in jail and tortured them in the past 15 years. Now we can’t bear oppression anymore. We stand today against the torture of the government,’ he said.
‘AL wants to linger their power through oppression, killing, disappearing, and jailing of the opposition people due to their greed for power,’ said Mirza Abbas.
He added that the government had told deputy commissioners and police superintendents that if the BNP came to power, none of them would retain their jobs, and they were telling their party activists that none of them would survive if the BNP came to power.
‘BNP does not agitate to kill anyone, take away jobs, or make anyone prime minister. We are agitating to help people get their voting rights back,’ he said.
The two rallies started at 3:00pm where a huge number of leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated bodies joined, carrying banners and festoons.
They also gave slogans demanding the stepdown of the Sheikh Hasina government and the release of Khaleda Zia.
Besides, prayers were held on Friday at district, metropolitan areas, upazilas, municipal areas, and union levels across the country for the recovery of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia from illness.
