Stern action needed to stop incitement to violence

The recent incidents of arson targeting vehicles and cocktail bomb explosions in Dhaka, the capital, and its surrounding areas should not be considered as a grave warning sign for the country’s overall political stability and security. The attempts to stoke political tensions ahead of the forthcoming month of December are clearly part of a calculated conspiracy to obstruct the country’s democratic transition. Such acts of sabotage cannot simply be viewed as a deterioration in law and order but as a broader attempt to foment political instability.
According to media reports, several buses have been set on fire in recent days, while cocktail bombs have been detonated at sensitive locations, including TSC area of Dhaka University, Pallabi Police Station and even Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters. Such attacks surely instil fear among common people and pose a direct challenge to the country’s legal and administrative foundations. These crimes have intensified, particularly against the backdrop of the activities of the ousted political forces and their announcements regarding a return to the country. So, there is little doubt these incidents are part of a far-reaching strategy aimed at creating instability and rendering state institutions ineffective.
However, serious questions have arisen over the role of law enforcement agencies and the administration in addressing this situation. Gaps in intelligence surveillance at the field level, along with a lack of effective action in many instances, are emboldening those responsible for sabotage. Since routine patrols are not sufficient to thwart this multifaceted conspiracy, every level of the state machinery must discharge its responsibilities with complete impartiality and professionalism. At the same time, political parties must demonstrate democratic tolerance and political foresight, something obviously Awami League is unlikely to do, to ensure that no vested interest can exploit the country’s internal challenges for its own ends.
The public aspiration to establish a democratic state founded on good governance, following the end of authoritarian rule, must not be allowed to be undermined by any conspiracy. So, the government and the administration must remain vigilant to ensure that no group can hold ordinary people’s lives to ransom in pursuit of political gains. The law must take its own course, and those responsible for these crimes must be swiftly brought to justice and given exemplary punishment. Otherwise, these relatively small-scale acts of sabotage could escalate into a much larger national crisis in the future.