BNP to go for hartal if govt obstructs party protests again

BNP leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday threatened to call hartal if the government continues to obstruct the party's protest programmes.
“The government by its anti-democratic activities forcing us to call hartal though we don't want to go for such tough action,” Alamgir, the party's senior joint secretary general, said at a press briefing held at the BNP chairperson's Gulshan office.
Asked about the anti-hartal bill placed in parliament on Thursday as private members' bill, he said it would be undemocratic and a denial of people's fundamental right.
“It won't be easy to pass such bill in parliament though this government can do anything by force.”
He claimed that people participated in the opposition's June 27 hartal spontaneously, but the government spread propaganda against the programme using an incident of death by fire.
Lambasting the government for not permitting them to hold their hunger strike at Paltan Maidan, he urged all to raise voice against the Awami League led government's “fascist attitude”.
The BNP leader said the government obstructed their peaceful human chain and arrested a number of leaders during hartal.
“They [government] want to eliminate the opposition by adopting different strategies to establish one-party rule in the country. Their initiative to amend the constitution is part of the plan,” he added.
Mirza Alamgir, also a former state minister, requested all to join the protest rally at the city's Muktangan on July 25. He threatened to announce further action if law enforcers obstruct their rally.
BNP joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and party chairperson's advisory council member Abdul Quiyum were present at the briefing.