Govt halted JCD council to hush up BCL extortion, alleges BNP

Govt halted JCD council to hush up BCL extortion, alleges BNP

Prothom Alo English Desk | Sep 15, 2019

Ruhul Kabir Rizvi AhmedBangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Sunday alleged that the government has halted the council of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) through the court to hush up the extortion incident by ruling party’s student body Bangladesh Chhatra League, reports UNB.

“The president and secretary of Chhatra League were removed for indulging in extortion. Chhatra Dal’s council was halted only to hush up the extortion incident by the Chhatra League leaders,” said BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

He further said, “There has been a huge outcry over the extortion by Chhatra League. Sheikh Hasina stopped the council of Chhatra Dal to divert people’s attention to a different direction from the extortion incident.”

Rizvi came up with the remarks while speaking at a rally in front of BNP’s Naya Paltan central office taken out by the party leaders and activists marking the International Day of Democracy.

He alleged that the current government is now using the court as a knife of butchers to halt political activities. “A democratic council was stopped through the court.”

Rizvi said Sheikh Hasina made such BCL president and general secretary who demanded Tk 860 million as toll from Jahangirnagar Universality vice chancellor for their expenditure during Eid. “People are now expressing their hatred towards Chhatra League as the extortion incident has now become a talk of the town.”

Amid various controversies, BCL president Rezwanul Haque Chowdhury Shovon and general secretary Golam Rabbani were removed from their respective posts on Saturday.

On Thursday, a Dhaka court issued an ad interim injunction on holding the JCD council as its ex-assistant religious affairs secretary Md Aman Ullah Aman filed a case seeking a permanent injunction on it.

Meanwhile, BNP senior joint secretary general and ex-JCD president Habib-un-Nabi Kahn Sohel demanded the government bring the removed BCL president and secretary under justice for indulging in extortion.

“Two BCL leaders were removed from their posts on charge of extortion. We demand they also be put on trial,” he said to a human chain programme.

Jatiyatabadi Matsyajibi Dal arranged the programme in front the National Press Club demanding the release of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.

Sohel said the BCL leaders should face trial as they stigmatised the student politics by indulging in extortion.