Fictitious cases: How will the govt prove something that didn’t happen?

It is hard to hide if any incident of vandalism and violence takes place somewhere. Similarly, one cannot prove any incident unless it actually took place. Before the 2018 elections, there were hundreds of cases against opposition leaders and activists, which were later not proved. After the elections, those cases also remained stalled.

There have been serious allegations of fresh cases against the leaders and activists of the opposition party ahead of 2024 national election. A case was filed in Tejgaon police station on 10 May for throwing crude bombs and arson attacks on various places including a van in Karwan Bazar area. More than 100 people including 37 with names and 75 to 80 unnamed people of BNP and its wings have been made accused.

According to the statement of the case, the incident took place on 9 May (Monday) between 7:30 PM and 7:50 PM. People around the scene and also the witnesses of the case told Prothom Alo that they did not see such incidents of explosion and fire on that day. A witness to the alleged incident in Karwan Bazar said, "I did not see any bomb being exploded or arson anywhere on the road." Witnesses to the incidents in Banani, Wari, Shahjahanpur, Uttara and Jatrabari also said the same.

Six cases have been filed in the capital on charges of crude bomb explosion, arson, vandalism, and assault on the police from May this year to 22 October. Names of 150 leaders and workers of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami have been named as defendants in these cases. Apart from this, more than 700 unnamed people were made accused. All have been charged with offenses under the Explosive Substances Act, Special Powers Act and various sections of the Penal Code.

Not only in Dhaka, but also in other parts of the country including Rajshahi, there have been reports of disappearance cases. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir alleged that 96 cases have been filed against BNP leaders and activists across the country from 22 August to 21 November. Under those cases, 445 people have been arrested. As many as 4,412 people have been named in these cases.

Earlier in 2018, 578 cases were filed against opposition leaders and activists for bomb explosions and vandalism in Dhaka city alone before the 11th parliamentary elections in 2018. The government could not prove any of the cases. If these cases are filed to intimidate and harass the leaders and workers of the opposition party, it is very disturbing.

These cases remind us of the story of the boy who cried 'Wolf!' . The boy was deceiving the villagers for days that there was a wolf coming to attack the sheep so no one believed him eventually. Later, when the wolf actually came and he cried out, no one believed him and no one came to the rescue.

The government will take legal action against the criminals engaged in violence, terrorism and sabotage. No one should object to this. Rather, in that case, people's confidence in law enforcement will restore.

But if they continue to file fictitious cases to contain the opposition, it will bring no good. Then people will not trust police in case of a real incident of sabotage.