BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Sunday alleged that there was a sinister attempt to tarnish their party’s image by falsely blaming it for the rape of a Hindu woman in Muradnagar, Comilla.
“For 15 years, the Awami League has carried out a smear campaign against the Zia family, and now they are secretly spending money to continue that propaganda in order to damage BNP’s reputation. A clear example of this is the recent incident in Muradnagar,” he said at a press briefing at the BNP’s Nayapaltan central office.
Rizvi said that an Awami League leader committed a heinous act at a Hindu household in Muradnagar.
“It is so disgraceful that I feel ashamed even to utter it. Yet, they tried to shift the blame onto us. Similar incidents are being orchestrated in other places as well,” he added.
Although Sheikh Hasina fled the country, Rizvi said, her accomplices still remain in the administration, across various sectors, and at the grassroots level throughout the country.
“The associates of the Awami League are still present in various places, including the administration, and they have huge amounts of money at their disposal. They are using these funds to continue their efforts to smear political parties that support democracy and the current government. I believe the incident in Muradnagar, Comilla, reflects such malicious efforts,” he said.
Rizvi also said the deposed Awami League and its associates are trying in various ways to destabilize Bangladesh. “The incidents of push-ins through the borders are part of their scheme. They do not want the people of Bangladesh, democratic political parties, or the government to remain stable.”
He said the Awami League and its associates have built a network, and it is the government’s responsibility to dismantle it.
Rizvi said that BNP and other democratic political parties have long been demanding the arrest and prosecution of the Awami League’s accomplices who are still active in the administration and elsewhere. “But due to the slow pace and inaction, they are now involved in heinous crimes such as rape — and even daring to shift the blame onto others,” he said.
The BNP leader demanded exemplary punishment for those involved in the Muradnagar incident, so that people can see the government is acting properly and fulfilling its duty.
Earlier on Friday, a case was filed at Muradnagar police station after a man raped a Hindu woman at knifepoint in Ramchandrapur Panchkitta village in the upazila, where she had gone to visit her father’s house about two weeks ago.
The main accused, Fazor Ali, 36, and four others have been arrested in connection with the rape case.
