Though BNP is still in the streets as part of their anti-government movement, they’re also focusing on strengthening legal efforts to release its leaders and activists who are webbed by political cases and many of whom are in prisons. The party isn’t thinking of programs like hartal or blockade; rather focusing on meeting, rallies, marching and mass communications. More than one top leaders of the party said this to The Bangladesh Pratidin.
BNP senior joint secretary Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said, “We’ve been saying this election was a preplanned one, which was implemented on January 7. The election commission worked as the puppets. Hence, we called upon the people to boycott the vote and they didn’t go to the polling centers. Programs that can create huge pressure on government will be continued and we’re hopeful to force the ‘Bakshali government’ to resign and fulfill our demand of establishing caretaker government.”
According to some BNP leaders, BNP is now aiming at regaining the normal condition of the party by conducting normal programs. It wants to free the arrested and imprisoned leaders and activists to return to the campaigns like meeting and rallies. In addition, they expect the root level leaders and activists will be able to participate in open meeting and rallies very soon.
A long meeting of the Standing Committee held after the 12th National Parliament Elections. According to the sources of the meeting, the situation of the polling day, the next steps of the party were discussed in details in the meeting. The high command of the party is happy with the unprecedented response of the countrymen to the boycott call of BNP and like-minded parties. They see it as a silent protest against the government of the common people without going to the polling centers. Most of the people of the country are supporting the movement of non-partisan government of BNP. BNP's grassroots leaders and activists are very happy about this.
BNP thinks that the voting rate in the elections will not be more than 8 to 10 percent. Therefore, BNP will call upon the countrymen to boycott the new government. For this, programs like meetings, marches, public relations will be conducted. In addition, BNP will present the real evidence of the vote to the international community. Meanwhile, the Nayapaltan central office, which had been locked since the October 28 clash, was opened. The chairperson's office of Gulshan has also been opened. BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia returned to her Gulshan residence on Thursday evening after being under treatment at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka for five months.
A member of BNP Standing Committee said, "We will call upon the people to boycott the government formed through this fake elections. Initially mass communication and leaflet distribution program will be conducted for few days. After that, there was a discussion about giving street public engagement programs like meetings and marches. However, thousands of leaders and workers of the party are in prison now. Many senior leaders have cases against them. Many have been sentenced. Keeping these things in mind, we will give our program ahead. Besides, party will be organized internally to make it strong.”
When asked, BNP Chairperson's adviser Zainul Abdin Farooq said the government has voted in various ways relying on the Election Commission. Voting rights and democracy were not established in it. The country and the people have suffered. We called upon the people to boycott the elections. People responded to our call and boycotted the vote. Thanks to the countrymen for that.
He said BNP is much stronger now organizationally. We were, are and will remain in the democratic movement.
BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia is out of jail by executive order with punishment in corruption case. But his physical condition has not been good for a long time. The acting chairman of the party, Tarique Rahman, went out of the country during the One-Eleven and did not return. He is also convicted in multiple cases. The general secretary of the party, Mirza Fakhrul Islam, led the movement in field, but even he has been in jail since October 28. He got bail in 9 cases on Wednesday, but needs bail in two other cases to be released from jail. In the last four and a half months, the court has sentenced more than 1500 leaders and workers of BNP. There is also a precedent of sentencing 119 people in one day. They were mainly convicted in 2013-14 cases. The term of sentence is six months to two and a half years. BNP claims that more than 25, 439 leaders and activists have been arrested across the country since four to five days before the rally on October 28. More than 770 cases have been filed. More than 4, 275 leaders and workers were injured. On October 28, BNP started strike and blockade program from the day after the grand rally of the party held in Dhaka. On October 29, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was arrested and the arrest operation continued. Many of the top leaders of BNP are now in jail. Leaders and workers say that all in all, BNP will now pay more attention to the legal battle to free the detained leaders and workers. The field movement will continue as well.
(The report was published on print and online versions of The Bangladesh Pratidin on January 11 and rewritten in English by Lutful Hoque Khan)
