Staff Reporter :
Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader on Sunday accused the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led alliance of engaging in violence and carrying out bomb attacks realising imminent election defeat.
“The BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami have adopted lies and violence as the voters rejected them again in the election, he said.
At least six leaders and activists were killed and about 3,000 were injured until Saturday night, but there was no report of injury from the opposition party, he claimed. “The election was being held peacefully except for some stray incidents,” Quader said.
“I am 100 per cent hopeful about the AL-led grand alliance’s victory,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Joint-General Secretary of the Awami League, in a press briefing said, “The BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami alliance realised that their defeat was confirmed and therefore, were choosing terror and violence. At least six leaders and activists of the Awami League were killed on the eve of the election in attacks by the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.”
Earlier, Kamal Hossain, Chief of the Jatiya Oikya Front, expressed concern at the state of the election throughout the country after he cast his vote at 9am on Sunday.
“Every minute, I receive calls saying ‘Kamal Bhai, it has already happened overnight. It began in the evening. I have gotten so many reports,” he said. “These reports are concerning. It’s sad and shameful.”
It is a dishonour to the martyrs of 1971 and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to grab polling centres and preventing the voters from vote, said the Gono Forum president.
“How can a veteran leader like Dr Kamal Hossain speak such lies? He said there are no BNP agents. It is obvious for the BNP not to have agents as their members have lost the nominations at least in seven seats following the High Court verdict,” said Awami League Joint General Secretary Nanak.
“Has any BNP candidate or agent been forced out from any constituency?” he said.
“The BNP has proved their shortcomings by nominating those who are constitutionally ineligible to contest, wartime criminals, assassins of Bangabandhu and the four national leaders, families of the convicts in the August 21 grenade attack case and patrons of terrorism.”
“The people of the country have never responded to any call from the BNP. They did not have election campaigns because the people rejected them,” Nanak said.
He urged the people to stay with the Awami League and overcome fears of violence.
The election begun in a festive atmosphere throughout the country and voters were participating in it peacefully, claimed the Awami League leader Nanak.
“There had been tremendous spontaneous support for the boat from the people of Bangladesh because of the Awami League’s success and contributions to the welfare of the people,” he said.
