BNP leaders, activists being treated inhumanely in jail: BNP

BNP on Thursday alleged that its arrested leaders and activists are being subjected to an "inhuman" attitude in jail.

"The leaders and workers at all levels of our party, including the top leaders, in jail are being treated inhumanely," said party acting office secretary Syed Emran Saleh Prince.

Speaking at a press conference at the party's Nayapaltan central office, he also said although BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas and former ministers and MPs were supposed to get the division in jail, they were not given the division in the beginning.

Even, Prince said, their party's ailing Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmad and freedom fighter and former deputy mayor of Dhaka city Abdus Salam were not given the division.

He also alleged that BNP top leaders were kept in lock-up for more than 24 hours after their arrest.

The BNP leader said most of the party's arrested leaders and activists are suffering from various complex diseases, including cardiac problems and diabetics, but the jail authorities are not allowing their families to send necessary medicines for them.

"Even, the necessary clothes can't reach them (the arrested party leaders) in the jail. Though the families of the inmates are repeatedly taking the necessary items to jail gate, the prison authorities are returning them," he said.

Prince also alleged that most of the jailed leaders are now being allowed to meet their family members. "Even though they are jailed on false and fabricated charges, they are being treated like notorious murderers and criminals, which is a clear violation of the jail code and human rights," the BNP leader said.

He strongly condemned and protested against such abhorrent treatment attitude towards the jailed BNP leaders and activists and demanded that they be given the medical facilities and other benefits they deserve as per the jail code."

On 7 December, BNP leaders and activists engaged in a clash with police in front of the party's Nayapaltan central office centring the party's 10 December divisional rally in the capital.

Later, police raided the BNP office and arrested around 450 party leaders and activists from there. The law enforcers also arrested Mirza Fakhrul and Mirza Abbas the following day.