The BNP has alleged that officials loyal to ruling Awami League are given the responsibility to conduct the Dhaka city elections, slated for Jan 30.
“We know the backgrounds of those [pro-AL] officials who went to ministers to get approval for vehicles and permission for government land for their own schools,” Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Tuesday (Jan 14).
Speaking at a program at party chief's Gulshan offices in Dhaka, "The use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) will never reflect the people's verdict.
"EVMs are being rejected in all countries across the world as they can be manipulated," he added.
On Chattogram 8 by polls which AL won with huge margin, Fakhrul alleged voters were barred to go to the polls centers as ruling party activists exploded hand bombs and attacked people with sticks.
“How will the decent and common people face hooligans who resort to terrorism and that's the reality,” he said before blaming AL for destroying the future of the next generations.
The senior BNP leader said, “They (govt) have turned the entire country into a torture cell. Those of us who took to the streets protesting the government’s misdeeds, many of them were made to disappear and went missing after being picked up by law enforcement, and many others were killed or sent to jail.”
Expressing concern about the growing incidents of killing, rape, and road accidents, Fakrul said: “If you see the newspapers you will get an impression that a grand festival of killing is going on across the country. They have created a reign of terror, spreading fear and panic.”
The BNP leader said the ruling party has created such an appalling situation in the country that even journalists are now imposing self censorship to avoid the government’s wrath.
Jatiyatabadi Help Cell arranged the program to provided financial assistance to 10 families of party leaders who were either subjected to enforced disappearance, killing, or maiming by law enforcement and ruling party supporters.