Mirza Fakhrul denied bail, BNP scrambles to keep alliance intact

With BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir denied bail yesterday, the party is faced with escalating legal and political pressure from the government, which the party says is coercing its leaders and allies  into participating in the upcoming national election through "intimidation" and "enticements".

BNP leaders say the government is suppressing the BNP on the streets and attempting to create divisions within the alliance led by the party, which calls for the election to be conducted under a neutral caretaker administration.

They have also raised concerns about the recent surge in convictions against prominent party leaders based on old cases and the denial of bail for recently detained leaders.

On Wednesday, at a virtual press conference, BNP Senior Joint Secretary Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, said, "Despite participating in the anti-government movement for some time, certain parties are now flocking to Sheikh Hasina's residence to get a share of the pie. The situation resembles a cattle market where bargaining is taking place."

"Under pressure and enticement from the government, they are attempting to position themselves against the will of the people," he said.

Rizvi further said, "The unscrupulous defectors will be consigned to the dustbin of history. Their capacity to inflict significant harm on our ongoing movement is limited, and our victory is certain."

Regarding the heightened legal pressure on BNP leaders, he said, "The government is eliminating the last vestiges of democracy by employing law enforcement forces akin to Gestapo tactics."
 
Fakhrul denied bail

On 29 October morning, police detained Mirza Fakhrul from his Gulshan residence after deadly clashes rocked parts of Dhaka the previous day. Around 10 hours later, police filed at least two cases against him.

Yesterday, after 2pm, Mirza Fakhrul's lawyers presented arguments for bail at the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court. Conversely, Chief Public Prosecutor (PP) Abdullah Abu opposed the bail.

Following deliberations from both parties, the court declined the bail application. The decision was rendered by Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Acting Judge Faisal Atiq Bin Quader on Tuesday.

The BNP has claimed that since 28 October 15 leaders and activists, including a journalist, have been killed and approximately 15,000 leaders and activists have been arrested in the ongoing movement for a caretaker government.

Besides Mirza Fakhrul, several top leaders including BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Mirza Abbas, Joint Secretary Moazzem Hossain Alal are in jail.

Yesterday, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) pleaded for the highest penalty for BNP standing committee member Mirza Abbas in a graft case filed against him in August 2007.

Some 136 BNP leaders and activists, including Joint Secretary General Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel, Information Affairs Secretary Azizul Bari Helal, Voluntary Affairs Secretary Mir Sarafat Ali, and former Jubo Dal president Saiful Islam Nirob, were recently sentenced in connection with the arson case centred on the 5 January 2015 election.
 
'Division' in BNP alliance

A new alliance named the Jukto Front, led by the Bangladesh Kalyan Party and joined by the Jatiya Party (Matin) and the Bangladesh Muslim League (Kamruzzaman), was established yesterday.

Chairman of the Kalyan Party Syed Mohammad Ibrahim made clear the alliance's intent to participate in the upcoming national election under the auspices of the incumbent government. Notably, the Jatiya Party (Matin) had aligned with the BNP during the national elections in 2018.

The Kalyan Party was earlier participating in the ongoing anti-government movement of the BNP-led alliance demanding the next election to be held under a caretaker government.

Syed Mohammad Ibrahim said he changed his position on joining the election under the current government after having failed to get success in the street movement.

Additionally, the Trinamool BNP and the Bangladesh Nationalist Movement (BNM), formed by leaders from the BNP, are also actively participating in the elections under the current government.

As per BNP sources, the party is currently focused on preventing any leader from submitting nominations or departing from the party until 30 November. Additionally, the party intends to sustain diplomatic pressure on the government and fortify the ongoing movement leading up to the elections.

On Tuesday, Quader Gani Chowdhury, member of the BNP media cell, expressed concern to reporters, stating that in the coming days, members of the Awami League might procure nomination forms using the names of BNP leaders, aiming to sow confusion among both party leaders and the public.

Meanwhile, top leaders of the 12-party alliance termed Kalyan Party President Muhammad Ibrahim as a traitor for forming the new coalition Jukto Front and joining the polls. 

At a meeting of the alliance yesterday, 12-party alliance leaders expelled the Bangladesh Kalyan Party led by Ibrahim and the Bangladesh Muslim League (Kamruzzaman) led by Sheikh Zulfikar Bulbul Chowdhury from the alliance.

 BNP seeks diplomatic pressure on govt
 
Meanwhile, on 21 November, the BNP penned letters to the embassies of several countries in Bangladesh, outlining the specifics of the violent incidents related to the mass rally in Dhaka on 28 October and the ongoing hartal-blockades, arson, vandalism, explosions, and assassinations.

The letter from the party calls for an international investigation into these events.

Meanwhile, the blockade called by the BNP-Jamaat across the country was observed loosely on Wednesday.

During the day, the traffic in the capital was slightly below the usual level. Nonetheless, there were private cars and public transport visible on the roads. The traffic volume increased compared to previous strikes or blockades. However, long-distance buses remained stationary due to insufficient passenger numbers.