Cases filed against more than 100 BNP men in Savar, Keraniganj

Two separate cases have been filed with Savar Model police station and Keraniganj Model police station against more than 100 BNP leaders and activists for "exploding cocktails, vandalising vehicles and setting them on fire" while they were returning from a rally at Aminbazar in Dhaka on Thursday (28 September).

Police have already arrested six of the accused. Four of them were arrested by the Savar Model police station, while two were by the Keraniganj Model police station.

They were arrested from different areas under the police stations' jurisdictions on Friday (29 September) night, police station officials said. 

Among the two cases, Savar Model police station filed a case against 40 named, including former Member of Parliament (MP) of Dhaka-19 constituency Dr Dewan Md Salahuddin Babu and another 40-50 unnamed BNP activists for their alleged involvement in vandalism and the detonation of cocktails.

"On their way back from the BNP rally in Aminbazar, the party leaders and activists suddenly started vandalising some vehicles and exploded cocktails in the Hemayetpur area. No arrests have been made in the case filed with Savar Model police station yet," Abdul Jalil, sub-inspector (SI) of Savar Model police station and the plaintiff of the case, told The Business Standard.

Another case has been filed with Keraniganj Model police station against 31 named and some unnamed BNP activists for setting fire to an auto-rickshaw in the Washpur area of Keraniganj, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Keraniganj Model police station Mamun-or-Rashid told The Business Standard.

The case also accused BNP activists of looting and beating locals. "They also attacked the police when we reached the spot," OC Mamun said. 

Meanwhile, BNP leaders claimed the cases are baseless. 

Dhaka District BNP Organising Secretary Barrister Erfan Ibne Aman Omi asserted that the filed cases aim to disrupt the BNP's one-point movement to topple the government by intimidating BNP activists and quell the growing support for the movement.

"Keraniganj and Savar Awami League men did the vandalism themselves and filed the cases against BNP men to harass them," he claimed. 

Former MP Dr Dewan Md Salahuddin Babu said no vandalism took place in Savar and Keraniganj on the day, and "the cases have been filed only to harass BNP activists".