The government is committing a crime against democracy by forming cells to convict BNP leaders across the country in "false" cases ahead of the next general election, party Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference at the BNP chairperson's Gulshan office, Fakhrul also said the government is trying to wipe out BNP by using the police, judiciary and the state machinery to hold a lopsided election as it did in 2014.
"Seven of our leaders and activists were sentenced to two years in jail each in a false and fictitious case filed with Mugda Police Station in 2013. It's happening all over the country," the BNP leader said.
He had heard that the government made a list of BNP's important leaders in different districts. "A cell has been formed to quickly dispose of the cases against those front-ranking leaders."
Fakhrul said the conviction of seven BNP leaders in a "fabricated" case of Mugda police station "proves that the judiciary cannot work independently."
He alleged that the government again started following its old style to eliminate BNP leaders and activists by arresting, harassing, and intimidating them with false cases ahead of the next general election.
"This is a crime against humanity and also a crime against democracy.”
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The BNP leader said the government was also trying to suppress other opposition parties like the left ones by filing cases against them and letting loose police as they came up with political programs against price hikes in essentials.
"They (government) are trying to make the election field empty as they did it before the national election in 2018 and 2014," he said.
Fakhrul also condemned the arrest of their party leader Ishraque Hossain from the capital’s Motijheel area.
He said police tortured BNP leaders and activists, lobbed teargas shells and opened fire on them while arresting Ishraque and taking him to a Dhaka court. "But police now filed a case against 88 main leaders of Dhaka south city unit BNP with the same intention to subdue the government's opponents."
The BNP leader said the ruling party leaders used to talk about democracy and a fair election, but the government was trying to eradicate the opposition leaders and activists.
He labeled the new chief election commissioner's dialogues with different sections of people as a drama as part of the ruling party's move to hold another election and "manipulate its results like in the past".
Fakhrul said the ruling party would come up with a new strategy to manipulate the next polls. "The next election may not be held the night before the voting like the last polls. It may be held seven days before the voting this time."
He criticized the inspector general of police and the DMP commissioner for making political statements against BNP and its leaders. "The way the servants of the republic talk it gives us an impression that we're not living in a civilized country."
The DMP chief as well as several ministers have described as "ill motive" the BNP's attempts to introduce party chief Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Zia as Freedom Fighters.