Talks on declaring state of emergency are gossip: Home secretary

Home secretary Nasimul Haque Gani has said talks that are making rounds on the declaration of state of emergency are gossip.

He made the remarks while speaking to newspersons at the conference room of the home ministry at the Secretariat in Dhaka on Monday.

Prior to this, he signed a standard operating procedure (SOP) with Australia to prevent human trafficking and illegal migration.

Replying to a query, Nasimul Haque said they have no information of any possible deterioration of law and order situation in the country and satiations remain under the control of the government.

Rumours spread on social media on Sunday night that a state of emergency would be declared in the country with supporters of the ousted Awami League providing information on it.

When attention was drawn on the matter, the home secretary said these discussions are just gossip. “We are remaining alert, the police are on alert. Everyone is trying so that we can maintain the existing stability,” he added.

Nasimul Haque said Australia would start the process of issuing visas for the Bangladeshi citizens from the Australian High Commission in Dhaka after Eid-ul-Fitr.

Prior to this, Home Adviser Lt. Gen. (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury told the journalists that the scope of cooperation between Bangladesh and Australia is vast.

Both countries have bilateral trade, development and technological partnership. Bangladesh has a diversified workforce, including professional, skilled, semi-skilled and non-skilled workers, who can contribute to meeting the demand of the Australian labour market significantly, he said.

The home adviser said an overall and coordinated regional approach is necessary to tackle illegal migration and human trafficking.

This SOP would be an important tool to strengthen the mutual cooperation between Bangladesh and Australia, he said, hoping that the SOP would also cooperate effectively on the exchange of technological capacity and intelligence information, as well as on the prevention of human trafficking and illegal migration.

The home adviser thanked the Australia government for the decision to process the Australia visa application in Dhaka.