“We earlier demanded an international investigation into the May 5 incident at Shapla Chattar. It’ll be clear after the probe who will actually be booked for killing and burning the copies of the Quran,” said BNP chairperson’s adviser Shamsuzzaman Dudu.
“We’ve sought an explanation from the Prime Minister and a press note from the government about the late night operation… the premier didn’t reply to our questions. What the Prime Minister has said about the incident before the investigation is irrelevant,” he added.
While addressing a post-hartal briefing at BNP’s Nayaplatan central office, Dudu came up with the reaction to the Prime Minister’s remarks that the opposition leader would be implicated in the cases filed for burning people alive and the copies of the holy Quran.
At a views-exchange with the grassroots leaders of the ruling Awami League from Feni at her official residence Ganobhaban, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said, “She (Khaleda) is the instigator…she’s the accused of giving orders.”
Addressing the briefing, Dudu, now performing as the spokesman of BNP, said Thursday’s shutdown was observed across the country with people’s spontaneous participation.
He claimed that three of their activists were killed in Feni, Chapainawabganj and Jessore in police firing during the hartal hours today.
The BNP leader also claimed that police arrested 97 opposition activists across the country during the hartal hours while more than 109 others injured in attacks by law enforcers and ‘ruling party cadres’.
The BNP-led 18-party alliance called the shutdown protesting the killing of unarmed Alems (Islamic scholars) in a crackdown on Hefajat-e-Islami’s sit-in at Shapla Chattar early Monday.
Dudu said people by observing the hartal spontaneously proved that they do not want to see this ‘killer, anti-people and oppressor’ government to stay in office. “We want to tell the government that there’s still time…Step down accepting the demand for restoration of the caretaker government to bring back normalcy in the country.”
He also condemned the police raids on the residences of BNP standing committee member MK Anwar, vice chairman Sadeque Hossain Khoka and BJP chairman Andalib Rahman Partha and the re-arrest of Jubo Dal president Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal.
Distributing a leaflet among the journalists having an appeal of Khaleda Zia, “Brutal mass killing: Awami League in the dock”, Dudu said, “The government didn’t allow to print the leaflet. Police confiscated it from the printing press and arrested leaders and activists from there.”
“The government didn’t allow even to print this normal leaflet. Is the state of emergency imposed in the country?” he questioned.
