Foiling BNP programmes: Transport strike, a tool govt using

Is this just a coincidence?

When the BNP tries to organise a large political programme, it faces obstacles to mobilising its leaders and activists as transport services become unavailable all of a sudden.

This has happened more than once in the recent past.

In the meantime, common people suffer because of the sudden transport crisis.

BNP leaders allege that the government misuses the state machinery to suspend transport services in its efforts to foil their peaceful programmes.

Political analysts echoed their views and said the government keeps resorting to the same tactics to prevent its political archrival from getting organised and staging protests.

Ahead of today's BNP-announced rally in Rajshahi demanding a fresh national election, something similar was noticed yesterday.

Bus services started becoming unavailable from morning. Till noon, the services were completely "suspended", alleged party leaders.

Wishing not to be named, owners of several private bus services said some traffic sergeants stormed into their offices in the morning and asked them not to operate vehicles for the day.

An official of Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) confirmed the matter to The Daily Star. He too wished to remain unnamed.

Golam Ruhul Kuddus, additional deputy commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police, however, denied the allegation and said no one from police did anything like that.

BNP leaders further alleged that law enforcers did not grant them permission to hold the rally till yesterday evening, although they had sought the permission two weeks ago.

The sudden transport crisis left hundreds of passengers in trouble.

Asked, Rajshahi District Bus Owners Association Joint Secretary Shafkat Manjur said they stopped their services fearing attack on their vehicles ahead of the BNP programme.

There have been instances when buses were torched before such events, he added.

On February 5, the party announced that it would hold rallies in six city corporation areas across the country, including in Rajshahi, demanding fair parliamentary elections.

The first rally was in Barishal on February 18. But from morning that day, ferry services between Shimulia and Banglabazar remained suspended, preventing BNP men from crossing the river.

The party alleged that the government suspended the services on purpose while officials concerned blamed "technical issues" for the suspension.

"It's a government tactic to prevent the opposition party from getting organised and raising voices," M Hafizuddin Khan, former adviser to a caretaker government, told The Daily Star.

"Such a tactic is successful in the short term, but it fails in the long run," he said.

He also said it seemed the police were acting on the government directives.

On February 28, the BNP held a rally in Khulna. But transport owners called a 24-hour transport strike before the rally started. They said the strike was called to avoid possible damage to vehicles in case there was chaos during the rally.

On February 13, the party organised a protest rally in front of the Jatiya Press Club in the capital, protesting the government's decision to revoke its founder Ziaur Rahman's gallantry "Bir Uttam" title.

But the rally was foiled as police charged batons on BNP men and dispersed them from the venue.

Talking on the issue, Prof Al Masud Hasanuzzaman, a teacher of government and politics department at Jahangirnagar University, said political intolerance was prevailing in the country.

"It seems that the BNP has failed to organise and regain its strength. At the same time, it is plagued by weak leadership. The government's strategy also seems to be centered on cornering the opposition parties. The ruling party does not want to give any political mileage to its opponents," he added.

On Sunday, pro-BNP students' platform Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal also called for a rally in front of the Jatiya Press Club, protesting the authorities' decision to revoke the gallantry award of late President Ziaur Rahman, demanding the repeal of the Digital Security Act and an investigation into the death of writer Mushtaq Ahmed in prison custody.

But that programme was also foiled following a series of clashes between the  JCD men and the police.

Nearly 500 leaders and activists gathered there but police barred them from taking to the streets, saying the party didn't take any permission to hold the programme.

Prof Tareque Shamsur Rahman, another teacher at Jahangirnagar University, said 50 years after the country's independence, the two major parties are still at loggerheads, which is not good for democracy.

"I think the opposition party should be given political space. Besides, a mutual understanding between the two parties is much needed," he said.

Rahman also said the opposition should take permission from the authorities concerned for any rally and police also should extend their support to them.