28 Oct rallies: Dhaka cauldron?

Highlights

• BNP sticks to Nayapaltan 
• DMP says only admin to decide on venue
• Jamaat cannot hold rally: Home boss
• Both ruling, opposition camps ready  for possible attacks  

As the Awami League and BNP-Jamaat gear up for massive shows of strength in the capital on 28 October, concerns about potential violence have grown and the issues of venue and permission for the opposition rallies have become a source of contention.

While the BNP remains adamant on holding its rally in front of its Nayapaltan central office, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has stated that the party will not be permitted for staging the programme outside the location designated by the administration.

Besides, the home minister categorically said Jamaat-e-Islami would not be given permission to hold any rally under their own banner as the party is not registered.

BNP-Jamaat prepared to counter possible attacks

Sources say the BNP and its long-term ally Jamaat have prepared for the possibility of a police-Awami League attack on 28 October in Dhaka. If the mass rally in Nayapaltan is blocked or any procession is attacked, they have planned counter-resistance from 16 points in the capital.

According to BNP-Jamaat sources, a monitoring committee has been set up to track Awami League leaders, identifying Gulistan, Dhaka University, Dhanmondi and other areas of the capital as vulnerable to possible attacks.

BNP leaders and activists say there is an 80% chance of attacks from the police and Awami League on 28 October. In anticipation of this, 16 committees have been formed with the leaders of Dhaka metropolitan committees to counter the attacks in advance.

If the party's rally in Nayapaltan is obstructed, they will begin resistance from their respective locations. If the rally is not obstructed, the responsible persons will remain in the locations all day long and join the rally later, they said.

Several BNP leaders told The Business Standard that the party's acting chairman Tarique Rahman is holding regular meetings with party leaders to ensure the success of the 28 October rally. The party has prepared for a gathering of 10 lakh people in Dhaka at all costs. BNP leaders and activists at all levels have been instructed not to initiate any conflict, but to resist any obstacles.

Sources say that the BNP and its allied parties have initially decided to besiege the Secretariat on October 29 or 30. Sieges, demonstrations, sit-ins, blockades, and even strikes are gradually emerging as the next programmes.

Jamaat sources say the party is determined to hold a rally at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel on 28 October and if the police or Awami League prevent the rally there, they will hold it at an alternative location nearby. The party has already made all preparations to accommodate a crowd of 8-10 lakh people.

Several senior Jamaat leaders told TBS that the party is prepared for a police attack on its rally on October 28, and has tasked its student wing Chhatra Shibir with resisting Chhatra League activists from Dhaka University.

The Awami League's plan

The Awami League has also made elaborate preparations to counter the BNP-Jamaat mass rally on 28 October.

Awami League General Secretary and Road Transportation and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader warned that if there is an attack from the BNP, there will be a counterattack.

"We will not spare them, why should we spare them? Who are they? If they come to power, they will swallow the country," he said while speaking to the chief guest at a discussion held at the Dhaka district Awami League office in Tejgaon on Wednesday. 

"Do not believe in their words. BNP has honey in the mouth and poison in the heart. They are traitors. That party cannot be trusted. Vigilance should be maintained if necessary," he added.

Businessmen call for non-violence

Business leaders are also concerned about the political uncertainty of 28 October.

Mahbubul Alam, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries, said entrepreneurs who have been doing business in a stable environment for a long time are now going through a period of anxiety.

"We hope that political parties will not take any programmes that will harm the country's business, trade, and factory production. Because politicians do politics for the development of the people," he added.

Meanwhile, Khandaker Enayet Ullah, secretary general of the Bangladesh Road Transport Owners' Association, said, "There is no plan to cut off Dhaka or stop buses around 28 October. There is no such directive from the government, and we do not want to obstruct the BNP's conference either."