BNP steps up street action against ‘bid to destabilise country’

The ruling BNP has begun street programmes across the country, saying it aims to counter opposition attempts to “destabilise the country and disrupt the prevailing peace and stability”. 
It has urged grassroots leaders and activists to remain united and vigilant.
The party has intensified grassroots activity in recent days following reports of arson attacks and crude bomb explosions, in line with decisions taken at a joint meeting at its Nayapaltan central office on Sunday.
The meeting, attended by Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and joint secretaries general Khairul Kabir Khokon, Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel, Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Anee, MP, Abdus Salam Azad, MP, and Syed Emran Saleh Prince, reviewed the political situation after recent street violence, including the torching of vehicles, and the aftermath of the Jamaat-led 11-party alliance's road march. 
It decided not to give the opposition space to spread falsehoods on any issue.
Meanwhile, the alliance, led by the main opposition Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, warned during its Dhaka-to-Rangpur long march that its eight-point demand would turn into a “one-point movement”.

A BNP joint secretary general who attended the meeting told the Daily Sun, on condition of anonymity, that the party views the developments as a latent threat to national security and has resolved to build strong resistance through counter-protests on the streets.
On Wednesday, the party's volunteer wing, Jatiyatabadi Swechchhasebak Dal, held a rally in front of the Nayapaltan office. 
There, Rizvi, who is also political adviser to the prime minister, alleged that “fugitive fascists” were trying to create unrest from abroad, aided by a group of dormant forces within the country.
He said the opposition alliance had taken to the streets over the fuel price hike, although the crisis is global and has affected many developed countries. 
He also criticised Jamaat for staging the Dhaka-Rangpur long march, involving at least 1,000 vehicles, amid the fuel crisis. “People understand these things,” he said.
Rizvi urged people, including party leaders and activists, to stay alert against those he said were deliberately setting fire to vehicles in Moghbazar, Kafrul, Uttara, Mirpur and Shahbagh.
Afterwards, party leaders and activists brought out a procession from the office, which paraded through city streets and ended at the National Press Club.
Separately, speaking to journalists in Chattogram on Wednesday after a special law-and-order meeting at the Circuit House, BNP Joint Secretary General Anee said a certain group was plotting to destabilise the country through flash processions nationwide.
“Such activities will be dealt with through both political and administrative measures. We must prevent them from engaging in any form of unlawful and terrorist activities in the country,” he said.