Commission urges probe into fire alarm incident at Foreign Service Academy

The National Consensus Commission has requested the relevant authorities to investigate the incident of fire alarm that occurred during the 20th round of its second-phase dialogue with political parties at Shapla Hall of the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.

The commission's Vice-President Prof Ali Riaz made the request following the lunch break and asked the academy to submit a report within the next 24 hours.

"We are treating this incident with utmost seriousness. We have made both written and verbal requests to the academy. They have informed us that a committee is being formed immediately. We have asked them to submit a report within 24 hours," said Riaz.

He added, "As the dialogue is being broadcast live, the public is watching and deserves to know what exactly happened. On behalf of the commission, I urge all concerned to clarify the situation."

The session, which began around 11:30am, was interrupted around 12:15pm when a fire alarm caused panic among participants.

Riaz immediately suspended proceedings and asked everyone to evacuate the hall.

The alarm was silenced by 12:30pm, and the dialogue resumed at 12:45pm.

Commenting on the issue, Riaz said, "The National Consensus Commission believes that it is the responsibility of the relevant authorities to address this matter. If there has been any operational failure, it must be identified. We have requested that appropriate measures be taken to prevent recurrence and to ensure everyone's safety."

An official of the academy, wishing anonymity, told reporters that someone may have been smoking on the third floor of the main building, which could have set off the alarm due to smoke.