"BNP is a party of terrorists": Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. File pic

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, also the Awami League President, denounced the recent terror activities carried out by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in the name of an anti-government movement, Dhaka Tribune reported on Tuesday.

She said the BNP has once again proved through "resorting to violence" on October 28 that it is a "terrorist" party.

"BNP does not want an election; they want to create an unusual situation. BNP is a party of terrorists," PM Hasina declared during a press conference held at her official residence, Ganabhaban, to discuss the outcomes of her recent visit to Belgium.

Further, she said to have a dialogue with the opposition if US President Joe Biden does the same with the former president and 2024 US presidential candidate Donald Trump.

"Is (US President) Biden holding dialogue with Mr. Trump? If Biden sits with Trump for dialogue, then I will hold the dialogue (with the opposition)," she stated, referring to the US ambassador's call for dialogue with the opposition earlier that Tuesday.

After a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas expressed hope that all sides would engage in a "dialogue" without preconditions to de-escalate tensions and find a path toward free, fair, and peaceful elections, according to Dhaka Tribune.

Ruling out the possibility of any dialogue with the BNP, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina affirmed that the people of Bangladesh "do not want any dialogue with killers."

"No dialogue with the killers. This is Bangladesh. People of the country also do not want any dialogue with killers," she emphasised during the press conference.

She reiterated that elections would be conducted in due time, accusing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of attempting to create an abnormal situation ahead of the national election, as reported by the Dhaka Tribune.

She expressed confidence that the BNP would not be able to disrupt the upcoming general election through violence, citing their inability to do so in 2014 and 2018.

"They won't be able to stop the election in such a way (through unleashing violence). They couldn't stop the elections in 2013 and 2018. This time too they won't be able to do so. Inshallah, the election will be held in time," she said.

In response to a journalist's question, she affirmed that individuals involved in bus burnings would be identified, arrested, and penalised. "I think the hands they use to set a bus on fire should be burned immediately. If so, they will get a lesson or else not," she said.

PM Hasina expressed hope that the BNP would cease their violent actions. "If they don't stop, they will face the consequences for it," she warned, emphasising that such behaviour would not go unpunished.

In response to another question, Sheikh Hasina contended that the BNP had once again proven themselves a terrorist party by resorting to violence on October 28.

"BNP-Jamaat jote is terrorists. BNP is a terrorist party, which they proved again," she declared, noting that a Canadian court had previously labelled them as such.

While acknowledging that the BNP had been regaining public trust through their recent political activities, she condemned the October 28 incident, in which BNP supporters had attacked police and journalists.

Sheikh Hasina expressed doubt that the BNP's behaviour would change, asserting, "I think they don't want an election rather they want to create an abnormal situation."

The Prime Minister, who also serves as the Awami League president, contended that the BNP's character was to inflict suffering on the people.

"BNP is a terrorist organisation. I think now we should give the terrorists a lesson which they deserve. So, we'll do it," she declared.

These developments occur amidst escalating tensions between the ruling party and opposition parties in the lead-up to the general elections scheduled for January 2024. The opposition is demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, citing her lengthy tenure as a barrier to conducting free and fair elections.

In addition, on Tuesday, the police arrested Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas and Joint Secretary General Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal in the capital.

Earlier, on Monday, Bangladesh's leading opposition leader was sent to jail after being detained in a case filed over an attack on the Chief Justice's home, allegedly carried out by activists of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, as reported by Dhaka Tribune.

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