1 killed, dozens injured in police-opposition party activists clashes in Bangladesh

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) – At least one person was killed and dozens injured in nearly two-hour-long clashes between police and activists from Bangladesh's main opposition political party in Dhaka.

According to eyewitnesses, the clashes erupted when police attempted to open a road that had been allegedly blocked by hundreds of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) activists gathered in front of the party's central office in the Naya Paltan neighborhood.

During the clashes, police fired several hundred tear gas shells and charged batons, while opposition party activists pelted brick chips and stones at the law enforcers in retaliation.

Hundreds of opposition party leaders and activists gathered in front of their party office ahead of Saturday's grand rally to press the government to reinstate the non-political caretaker government system three months before the general elections, which are scheduled for December of next year.

During the clash, one person, Mokbul Hossain, 30, was killed.

He was taken to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) with critical injuries, and doctors declared him dead upon arrival, according to Bachchu Mia, in charge of the hospital's police outpost.

Hossain's political affiliation is unknown, and other injured people have been admitted to various hospitals and clinics in the capital city.

Dhaka police have also detained dozens of BNP activists and leaders, including Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Shahiduddin Chowdhury Annie, Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, and Amanullah Aman.

Amid a volatile political environment, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told journalists at the party’s central office gate that the government is attempting to thwart the party's grand rally on Saturday, blaming the police for deliberately attacking them in order to disrupt the peaceful environment.

"We wanted a peaceful rally. They (the government) stage a terrible event just to derail our upcoming rally. The government will be held accountable for the situation," Alamgir said.

However, Hayatul Islam Khan, a deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, claimed that the clashes occurred after BNP activists blocked the road and refused to open it despite repeated requests. "They attacked us and some of our force members were injured when we tried to remove them from the road to ensure people's normal movement," he added.

The BNP, along with some other major political parties in Bangladesh, has demanded that the three-month-long caretaker government system be reinstated, with the primary duty of holding a free, fair, and acceptable parliamentary election.

Bangladesh held several national elections under a caretaker government following the end of its 9-year-long military dictatorship in 1990. However, in the last two elections, in 2014 and 2018, in which the ruling Awami League party triumphed, the system was replaced and currently, the sitting government conducts general elections without making major decisions three months before the polls.

However, opposition parties claim that no fair election can be held under the Awami League because the government has committed gross irregularities in the previous two elections.

Meanwhile, amid the political tension in Dhaka, the US and UK embassies have issued travel warnings, advising their citizens to limit their movements in the city.

Earlier on Tuesday, 15 embassies in Bangladesh issued a joint statement urging the government to ensure citizens' freedom of peaceful assembly ahead of the next national election in 2023.

“We, as friends and partners of Bangladesh, eager to further support its success, reaffirm the importance of free, fair, inclusive, and peaceful electoral processes in the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said the statement.