The police on Saturday foiled a rally of the Jatiya Party by firing teargas shells and hurling sound grenades in front of the party鈥檚 central office at Kakrail in Dhaka.
Party leaders and witnesses said that the police action began at about 3:45 pm when the rally was in progress.
Police officials said that they did not accept the party鈥檚 application to hold the rally at the place, but they verbally instructed the party to organise the event without occupying the road.
However, the party set up chairs and a stage on the street despite multiple warnings, and the police dispersed them as their repeated requests were ignored, they said.
After the incident, party secretary general Shamim Haider Patwary, at a press briefing, condemned the police action, terming it 鈥榗ompletely unwarranted鈥�.
He said, 鈥業t was a peaceful and short gathering. The rally was foiled unjustly based on false information. Police acted irresponsibly by spraying water and firing tear gas shells.鈥�
鈥楳any could have been trampled to death,鈥� he said, and claimed that several party activists were injured in police action.
鈥業t is true that we did not get official permission from the police to hold the rally,鈥� Shamim said, and added that other political parties were holding programmes in front of their central offices without permission.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police鈥檚 Ramna division deputy commissioner Masud Alam said that Jatiya Party submitted an application for holding the rally, but the police did not accept it.
鈥業t is a public road. They cannot occupy it. We repeatedly asked them not to block the road,鈥� he said.
鈥楻amna police station officer-in-charge requested them to vacate the area, but they refused. That is why we had to take necessary steps to disperse them,鈥� he added.
He also said that the police used teargas shells to disperse the crowd, and the situation came under control after the party activists had left the place.
Party chairman GM Quader, secretary general Shamim Haider Patwary, and other senior leaders attended the event, which began with speeches from a makeshift stage set up on a truck in front of the party office.
The party organised the rally demanding the withdrawal of the cases filed against GM Quader and other party leaders, the release of detained party people, and holding a free, fair, and participatory national election.
A large number of police personnel were deployed in the area from noon as processions of the party activists joined the rally in groups.