The cases in question took place in two separate upazilas. However, the case statements for both incidents bear striking resemblance, with only variations in the names of the accused and the timing.
Both plaintiffs, who are leaders of the local Jubo League and Chhatra League, reported hearing a loud explosion of a cocktail and witnessing flames from a petrol bomb.
They also claimed to have heard similar anti-government slogans during the events.
These cases were filed within a span of seven days in July. BNP leaders assert that these are ‘fictitious cases’ and merely aimed at harassing them. Local residents and witnesses state that they have no knowledge of any such incidents.
Moreover, a similar case has been filed in Begumganj, Noakhali district, where 56 leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliated organisations were accused, along with 350 unidentified individuals.
Before the 2018 national elections, numerous such cases across the country were filed with the police as plaintiffs. From January to 15 December of that year, 232 cases of sabotage were filed in 32 police stations across Chattogram city and district.
Similarity in case descriptions
According to the case statement, on July 14, around 9:20 pm, a group of 160 to 170 leaders and activists affiliated with BNP gathered at Giri Chowdhury Bazar in Patia Upazila, along the Chittagong-Cox's Bazar highway. They began chanting slogans, demanding the government's resignation. During the incident, the plaintiff, Nazrul Islam, who is the organizing secretary of pourasava Jubo League, was attacked by the group. He reported hearing the loud noise of cocktail bombs and witnessing flames from a petrol bomb at that time.
Similarly, the incident in Lohagara took place on 22 July. The time of incident is mentioned as 7:50 pm. Its plaintiff is Lohagara Upazila Chhatra League president AKM Asifur Rahman. The case statement mentioned the place of occurrence is the Lohagara Sadar Union area.
In two cases filed in Patia and Lohagara, a total of 40 individuals have been named as accused, all of whom are leaders and activists of the local BNP. Additionally, 320 other individuals have been listed as unidentified accused in these cases. The police have gathered evidence from the scene, including parts of the exploded bomb, as part of their investigation.
Md Yusuf was named a witness in the Patia case. He stated that while he was passing by the scene, he noticed a police van. The police lined up a group of people, including him, and asked them to sign a paper. Yusuf complied and signed the document.
Furthermore, at least eight residents from the neighbourhood claimed that they had not heard of any such incident in the Patia area.
In the Lohagara case, three associates of the Chhatra League leader were enlisted as witnesses. However, upon speaking with at least 12 people in the vicinity, they stated that they were not aware of any such incidents happening in Lohagara. Officer-in-Charge (OC) of two police stations say that nothing can be said before the investigation.
Chattogram south district BNP convener Abu Sufian told Prothom Alo that the leaders and activists could not stay at home due to the fictitious case.
Police as plaintiff in Noakhali
The police filed a case against 16 members of BNP and Jamaat on charges of attacking the police and exploding cocktails in Begumganj of Noakhali on 2 June. Another 30 unidentified people were made accused in the case. The then deputy inspector of Begumganj police station, Anwar Hossain, filed the case as the plaintiff.
Prothom Alo talked to 12 individuals in Krishnarampur regarding the incident. None of them claimed to have any knowledge of the gathering mentioned by the police on the day of the incident, nor were they aware of any attack on the police or a cocktail explosion.
In response to this, OC Mir Jahedul Haque of Begumganj Model Police Station stated that the accused individuals involved in such cases often deny the occurrence of the incidents in which they are accused .
Akhtar Kabir Chowdhury, the Secretary of Chattogram Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan), expressed concern that these cases could lead to political instability ahead of the elections, which might yield unfavorable outcome.