Police foil rallies against sculptures

Police stand guard in front of the hajj camp near Zia International Airport yesterday to prevent activists of an Islamist group from demonstrating to press home their demand for a Hajj Minar at Airport intersection.Photo: STAR

Police yesterday prevented three Islamist outfits from holding their scheduled anti-sculpture rallies near Zia International Airport and Baitul Mukarram mosque in the capital.
The activists of the outfits failed to take to the streets and stage demonstrations as a large number of police and intelligence personnel were deployed in those places preventing them from coming out of mosques after Juma prayers.
However, the activists at the mosques chanted slogans against installation of sculptures at roundabouts and demanded installation of Hajj Minars at intersections of the city where there are statues.
Biman Bandar Gol Chattar Murti Pratirodh Committee, a committee Against sculptures at the Airport intersection, had scheduled an anti-sculpture rally after Juma prayers near the airport yesterday.
The roundabout at the Airport intersection had five statues of Bauls (folk singers) which were removed following protest from an Islamist group.
Police on Thursday asked them not to hold the demonstrations as it would be a violation of the Emergency Power Rules, 2007.
Police said around 650 policemen were deployed at the Airport intersection since yesterday morning. Over 300 policemen were also deployed outside Baitul Mukarram mosque to avert any untoward incidents as a few Islamist groups demanded construction of a Hajj Minar at the Airport intersection.
Witnesses said police prevented people from entering the hajj camp mosque for Juma prayers and only allowed hajj pilgrims. Activists of the committee could not enter the hajj camp area as there were police barricades.
Police also prevented 300 activists inside Babus Salam Jam-e mosque from coming out and taking part in the agitation programme.
Chief of the committee Noor Hossain Nurani was seen very angry with committee activists as they failed to hold the rally.
Failing to hold the rally, leaders of the committee criticised the role of police and demanded that the government remove all sculptures set up at road intersections in the country.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shakti and Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan tried to stage separate demonstrations in the Baitul Mukarram mosque area after Juma prayers.
Witnesses said the activists of the groups did not dare to take to the streets seeing the presence of a large number of law enforcers. They, however, chanted slogans against sculptures staying on the mosque premises.
Paltan police said the activists were asked to leave since police had imposed a ban on such programmes.
Meanwhile, different organisations continued to protest removal of the Baul sculptures, and demanded reinstallation of those.
Protesting the removal, Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad (SKOP) yesterday formed a 'human chain' and held a rally in front of the Central Shaheed Minar. They also denounced the 'conspiracy' to destroy the spirit of Liberation War.
Addressing the rally, SKOP leaders demanded immediate reinstallation of the statues at the same venue, and exemplary punishment to those involved in the heinous incident.
Chaired by Wazdul Islam, coordinator of SKOP, the rally was addressed by Abul Bashar, Abdul Matin, Shah Mohammad Abu Zafar, Abdul Kader Hawlader, Mezbah Uddin Ahmed and Roy Ramesh Chandra.
Moreover, more than 100 cultural activists under the banner of Shachetan Shilpi Goshti brought out a procession protesting through songs removal of the Baul sculptures.
The procession started from the Institute of Fine Arts of Dhaka University and paraded campus roads.
The organisation will hold a protest rally at the Institute at 4:00pm today.