NCP denies 'occupying' AL office in Ctg, claims vandalism fueled by 'student-people's rage'
NCP Chattogram City unit Joint Coordinator Arif Moinuddin has explicitly refuted the occupation claim.
No case has yet been filed regarding the widely publicised vandalism of the now-defunct Awami League (AL) North District office in Chattogram, despite video footage circulating on social media showing leaders and activists of the National Citizen Party (NCP) damaging the premises.
Police confirmed they have not received any complaint regarding the incident.
The controversy surrounds the AL office on the fourth floor of the Dost Building in New Market area in the port city, which had been locked since the fall of the Hasina-led government after July Uprising.
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On Tuesday afternoon (21 October), a group of agitated individuals reportedly broke into the office. Video footage shows NCP leader Arif Moinuddin, joint coordinator of the party's Chattogram City unit, and several young men damaging the office furniture and a mural of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
While several media outlets initially reported that the NCP had "occupied" the office, NCP leaders held a press conference at the city's Biplob Udyan the following day (22 October) where they denied the allegations. They claimed the office was not occupied, but the damage was an expression of "the rage of the student-people."
Arif Moinuddin explicitly refuted the occupation claim.
"We did not go there to occupy; we only dismantled the new office setup," Moinuddin said. He asserted that the student-people became angry and resorted to vandalism upon seeing the photos of Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
"The frustration that Sheikh Hasina used Sheikh Mujib as a weapon for the last 16 years still exists among the people," Moinuddin explained.
The NCP leader further alleged that while Awami League's activities are currently banned, the party had been secretly reactivating the office.
"Since the political change on 5 August, the Awami League offices in Chattogram had been abandoned. But for the past two months, we have received news that activities were resuming in the offices; doors and windows were being fixed, and people moving in and out," he stated.
"Upon receiving this information, agitated students and people came here today (21 October), and we found various pieces of evidence," Moinuddin told The Business Standard earlier. "How can they conduct such activities despite being banned?"
"We informed the administration, but they did not take any action," he alleged at the presser while police officials confirmed that no formal complaint was filed.
Chattogram's Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md Abdul Karim told The Business Standard, "No one has informed us about the incident, and we have not received any complaint."
CMP's Assistant Commissioner (Kotwali zone) Mahfuzur Rahman added, "No case has been filed regarding this incident. If a complaint is received, action will be taken according to the law."
Abdul Malek, office assistant of the Chattogram North District Awami League, told the media that the office had been locked since 5 August 2024 following the July Uprising.
"On Tuesday afternoon, suddenly more than a hundred NCP workers came and forcibly occupied the office. They broke Bangabandhu's photo and furniture. They remained there until 8pm," he stated.
Chattogram's Dost Building has historically been a hub for various political groups, housing offices for AL, its affiliated wings, BNP, and other parties.
The building has been a silent witness to many political movements since the country's independence, and the Awami League office there was previously vandalised once after the July Uprising last year.
