AL staged ‘militant drama’ to divert attention: Fakhrul

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday accused the Awami League government of staging a drama of anti-militant drives to divert people’s attention from the ongoing movement.

“Where did so many explosives suddenly appear from? Just when our movement gained momentum, this militant drama got staged,” said Fakhrul.

Fakhrul made these remarks while speaking as chief guest during a discussion at Dhaka Reporters Unity on the occasion of the 54th birth anniversary of Arafat Rahman Koko, the younger son of party chairperson Khaleda Zia.

On Saturday, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police conducted a drive in Moulvibazar and arrested 10 suspected militants, recovering explosives and detonators.

Referring to the drive, Fakhrul said, “The government is crafty. Suddenly, an operation in Kulaura… Who brought those explosives?”

He alleged such drives are staged to show the West that militants can’t be controlled in the country without the AL government.

Fakhrul also demanded elections under a neutral caretaker government, saying AL knows it won’t get even 10 percent of seats in fair polls.

“This is the only reason they don’t want to listen to anything,” he added.

Replying to the PM’s remarks that BNP has no foreign support, Fakhrul said, “It shows how frightened you have become.”

“Today there is a call from everywhere that elections must be fair,” he added.