The law enforcement agencies including police and Rapid Action Battalion continued arresting opposition leaders and activists in countrywide drive while main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party accused law enforcement agencies for grave human rights abuses to their party activists.
Border Guard Bangladesh personnel were seen patrolling in Dhaka and elsewhere while the Dhaka Metropolitan Police said they were arresting people who were behind the arson attacks on bus or attacking on the law enforcement agencies.
The police headquarters formally declined sharing any number of arrests and prosecution of opposition leaders and activists so far while a senior official confirmed the arrest of 10,000 opposition leaders and supporters in last three weeks.
Abir Shuvro, an additional police superintendent (media and public relations) at the police headquarters, said they do not have the official figure of arrests and number of cases against them.
The RAB headquarters in their statement said they have arrested 659 people in connection with attack and ‘sabotage’ since October 28.
BNP in their official virtual press conference said 515 BNP and its associate organisations were arrested alone in last 24 hours and 21 more cases were filed against 2,315 people. In last 24 hours, the party said 120 of their leader activists were injured.
The opposition party said 3,175 people were arrested, 98 cases were filed against 11,520 leaders and activists, two activists were killed and 412 people others injured since the Election Commission announced schedule for next parliamentary elections on January 22. The number of arrests was 15,190 since October 28 while the number of arrest was 18,171 since July 28. Since July, the BNP said 760 cases were filed against 65,633 people and 6559 people were injured.
Since July, 415 opposition leaders and activists have been jailed and nine others have been awarded with death sentence in 26 cases.
Bangladesh Jamaat e Islami press wing in their statement said 61 of their leaders and activists were arrested between 4:00pm on November 21 and 1:00pm on November 22. At least 2,615 of their leaders and activists were arrested between October 25 and November 22, the Jamaat added.
In a virtual briefing on Wednesday evening, BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged that the government deployed ‘helmet force’ apart from the police and RAB.
The ‘helmet-force’ was targeting the houses of opposition leaders and activists, he alleged.
Ruhul Kabir alleged that the Detective Branch of police detained Dhaka College Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal joint secretary Jamal Hossain and plucked his nail from feet during interrogation.
He also alleged that whereabouts of Titumir College Chhatra Dal senior joint secretary Saiful Islam, who was picked from Mirpur on November 6, could not be confirmed as of the day.
He also alleged that JCD east city unit former secretary Gias Uddin Manik was picked plainclothes people from Khilgaon at about 7:45pm on Tuesday but his whereabouts was unknown until Wednesday evening.
Gazipur Metropolitan Police said they arrested four people in connection with the attack on the police and killing of a police member in Dhaka on October 28.
