Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, general secretary of Bangladesh’s main party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), on Wednesday expressed concern over the deteriorating situation in the country. He said that it has only been three months since the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government and violence has broken out on the streets of Bangladesh, people are shedding blood and attacks on freedom of expression are being carried out.
Speaking at a press club in Bangladesh, the leader of Sheikh Hasina’s opposition party, Alamgir, said: “Within three months, street fighting began. People shed each other’s blood, newspaper offices are burned and attacked… Is this the result of sacrifices?’
‘What kind of Bangladesh is this…’
Sheikh Hasina’s government fell on August 5 due to the student movement in Bangladesh. During the movement, Bangladeshi minorities, especially Hindus, were attacked. Nobel Laureate Prof. Even during the interim government formed under the leadership of Mohammad Yunus, violence in Bangladesh has not stopped and there have been reports of minorities being attacked.
Referring to these conditions in the country, Fakhrul asked, “What kind of Bangladesh is this?” Did we know a country like this before August 5? Why does this terrible violence exist today? Why does this instability exist? Where do the problems come from? I ask you this question.
He said the August 5 uprising has provided an opportunity to unite and bring about meaningful change. He further said: ‘It hasn’t even been three months and our true nature is starting to emerge. This type of behavior can never lead to success. If division and conflict continue in our home, we will not be able to do anything right.
‘Madness in the name of religion…’
The BNP general secretary further stated that “madness in the name of religion continues in Bangladesh.” Expressing concern over this, he said: ‘Despite our long fight for a free press, media offices are being burnt down. This is not the Bangladesh we had imagined, at least this is not the Bangladesh I want to see.
Islamic radicals in Bangladesh call for arson on social media. Warning about this call, the BNP general secretary said that some people want to take the country into darkness by creating division through social media.
He further said: ‘The madness doesn’t end here… There are calls for fires and vandalism. Can you imagine where they want to take Bangladesh? Do we recognize the attacker behind us with the dagger? Frankly, we don’t recognize it. If we had known then such irresponsible and careless words would not have come out of our mouths.
The BNP secretary general also warned the interim government of Mohammad Yunus to issue its statement with caution. He said government statements can create confusion among people, so the government should avoid giving misleading statements.
