Another 'Secret Party' Has Joined the Awami League in a Campaign of Propaganda, Says Rizvi
BNP acting secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has said the Awami League was a party of propaganda, and that another 'secret party' has now joined it — the two together are busy spreading propaganda. He made the remarks on Thursday (October 22) while speaking to journalists after distributing dengue-prevention awareness leaflets in Dhaka's Shantinagar area.
After the leaflet distribution programme, organised by Dhaka South City Corporation, Rizvi said: 'The Awami League was a propaganda party, and another secret party has joined them. They have immersed themselves in propaganda.'
'One of these two political parties is banned, and the other is now playing the role of the opposition. No one can compete with them in propaganda and smear campaigns,' he said.
Rizvi alleged that the party in question itself said it would forgive everything the Awami League did. The prime minister spoke because there is proof, he said, adding that in incident after incident their behaviour has been virtually identical to that of 'secret' actors and defeated forces, and their propaganda talk follows the same pattern. He also cited past propaganda and falsehoods surrounding Durga Puja as an example.
On Durga Puja security, the BNP acting secretary general said Tarique Rahman's government had shown that when a government stays alert, no conspirator can follow any blueprint. The prime minister, he said, engaged both the government and his party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, in ensuring security for the Hindu community's festival.
He said the party contacted every puja pavilion, spoke with the committees, and its leaders and activists worked day and night for security — and this year's peaceful festival, in his view, proved the point.
Highlighting the BNP's role, Rizvi said the party always speaks and works in the open light of transparency, keeps the promises it makes, and does not deviate from them. He claimed the Tarique Rahman government has been faithfully implementing its pre-election pledges since coming to power.
On the dengue prevention campaign, he said prevention must come before infection — people should use mosquito nets and take care so that mosquitoes do not bite during the day.
Rizvi said a large-scale cleanliness drive is under way in Dhaka and across the country. Having visited Rangpur, Rajshahi and Chattogram cities the day before yesterday, he said he saw the streets had become considerably cleaner.
He said the dengue awareness campaign could not be run for several days because of Durga Puja. For about five or six days the country was in a festive mood; at the pavilions of the Hindu community's biggest religious festival, conch shells and drums sounded with heartfelt enthusiasm.
According to Rizvi, Hindu brothers and sisters celebrated their main religious festival without obstruction and in safety. Many also came from a neighbouring country for worship, and they too commented that such a safe and peaceful puja in Bangladesh was truly praiseworthy.
An accusation of propaganda against political opponents and a claim of credit for the government over puja security — the BNP acting secretary general delivered both messages at the same briefing. No reaction from the accused party to his remarks was known yet.
