20 July 2018, Fri, 5:41

Government failed to create congenial atmosphere for holding a fair and credible city polls; alleges Secretary General

Police arrested Rajshahi City Corporation’s Boalia Thana Jamaat Ameer Professor Sirajul Islam, Secretary Maulana Abdul Khaleq and Assistant Secretary Shafiqul Islam and similar unjustifiably arrested of 4 women from Rajpara as they were conducting electoral campaign in favor of 2 number ward’s independent candidate. Later, the on duty mobile court sentenced all of them with one-month imprisonment. Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s Secretary General Dr. Shafiqur Rahman has issued the following statement on 20th July, 2018 protesting and condemning the incidents.

“These arrests and subsequent mobile court’s sentences are really painful. Condemning the harassments, I further want to assert that these incidents clearly substantiate that there is no congenial atmosphere in the country for holding a free, fair and credible election.

We have been observing with deep concern that the law enforcers are frequently carrying out raid into the houses of the Jamaat leaders and activists in a bid to arrest them. Jamaat men cannot live in their houses now. Not only in Rajshahi, even in Sylhet and Barisal, the local administration and ruling party men are working hand by hand to secure the victory of ruling Awami League’s candidate. On the contrary, the independent and opposition backed candidates are not allowed to continue their election campaign.

Several days back, three miscreants had hurled cocktails upon the candidate of the opposition alliances in broad day light. Several men were injured in the attack. But so far, the law enforcers could not arrest any of the miscreants. Actually, there is no visible effort from the government to arrest the attackers. 

The ruling party’s mayoral and councilor candidates in Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barisal city corporations are rapidly violating the electoral rules and disciplinary codes. But surprisingly, instead of preventing those ill-practices, the government and the ruling party thugs are creating obstacles in the election campaign of the opposition candidates. Such roles from the administration indicate that the government and its subservient election commission has utterly failed to ensure a level play ground for all candidates. 

In this backdrop, I am urging the concerned authority to create a congenial atmosphere for holding a free, fair and credible election in three city corporations and also to release all the detained leaders and activists of Jamaat-e-Islami immediately.