Dhaka, March 3 Bangladesh's Awami League on Tuesday expressed grave concern over what it described as ongoing mass arrests and custodial killings of political leaders and activists across the country, saying the actions violate fundamental rights and undermine justice and the rule of law.
The party alleged that the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government has followed the path of the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim government by using state machinery to carry out "repression, torture, and suppression" aimed at silencing dissent and pursuing political vengeance.
"Mass arrests of political leaders and activists, along with deaths in custody, continue to occur. Repeated arrests, indiscriminate remand orders, and reports of custodial deaths are causing pain and anger across the nation," the Awami League stated.
According to the Awami League, female party leaders and activists were arrested recently in Dhaka's Dhanmondi without any case being filed or criminal charges brought against them.
Highlighting the custodial deaths of party leaders and activists, the Awami League mentioned that Shamikul Islam, leader and vice president of the party's Gaibandha District chapter, along with Shafiqul Islam Khan, President of Chhatra League, the student wing of Awami League in Dumki Upazila of Patuakhali district, were killed in custody.
"Such blatant attempts to suppress opposition voices, intimidate dissent, and pursue political revenge are unacceptable in any democratic system. Mass arrests and custodial deaths are not only violations of fundamental rights but also contrary to justice and the rule of law," it stressed.
Emphasising that no one can evade responsibility for "extrajudicial repression, inhuman treatment, and lack of security inside prisons", the Awami League said, "It is the constitutional duty of the state to protect the life and dignity of every citizen. Any death in custody must be subject to an impartial, transparent, and credible investigation, and those responsible must be brought to justice."
These latest incidents under the new BNP government underscore the continuing feud with the Awami League, which experts reckon as a deepening cycle of political retaliation.
The Awami League has also repeatedly alleged that deaths in jail and police custody rose sharply across the country during the 18-month tenure of the former Yunus-led interim government, turning "detention into a source of fear rather than protection".
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