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DMP bans rallies at Paltan Monday
Staff Correspondent The Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner, AKM Shahidul Huq, on Saturday imposed a ban on meetings or rallies at Paltan Maidan and its adjacent areas from Sunday midnight until further order.
A DMP release said that the ban was imposed as Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami called a public meeting at Paltan Maidan on May 31 and Awami Jubo League also called a rally at the same place and at the same time, which could disrpt law and order and public security.
It said that the Police Commissioner imposed the ban under sections 28 and 29 of the Dhaka Metropolitan Ordinance 1976.
Section 28 of the ordinance empowers the DMP commissioner to prohibit certain acts, including carrying of arms, swords, spears, guns, knives, sticks and other article, or corrosive substances or explosives, that could be used in physical violence.
Section 29 empowers the commissioner to prohibit assemblies, processions whenever and as long as he considers it necessary for the preservation of the public peace or safety.
Jamaat-e-Islami and Awami Juba League, an associate body ruling Awami League for the youth, had called separate rallies at Paltan Maidan on Monday afternoon.
Jamaat called its rally to protest against what it considers the ‘conspiracy’ to hinder pro-Islam politics.
Jamaat also wanted to protest upper riparian India’s plan to build Tipaimukh Dam on the trans boundary river Barak to obstruct the water flow into the Surma, Kushiyara and Meghna rivers in lower riparian Bangladesh.
On getting the permission on May 18 to hold the rally at Paltan Maidan, Jamaat leaders were campaigning for its success.
‘We got the permission to use the Paltan Maidan,’ Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general Ali Ahsan Muhammad Mojaheed said at a meeting of the party at 2 pm on Saturday.
‘We are yet to get permission to use microphone there. I hope we will get the permission,’ he said.
He said the government will have to take the responsibility if it allows any other organisation to use the Paltan Maidan at the same time.
Awami Juba League general secretary Mirza Azam announced at 5 pm on Saturday that it will hold a rally at Paltan Maidan on Monday afternoon to demand expeditious trial of war crimes.
He made the announcement at an emergency meeting of the organisation at its central office at Bangabandhu Avenue in the city.
‘We sought permission to use Paltan Maidan for the purpose,’ he said.
The police commissioner, AKM Shahidul Haque, however, refused to say at about 8:30 pm on Saturday on whether or not the DMP hade given permission to any organisation to hold a rally at Paltan Maidan.
‘I am unable to make any comments now,’ he told New Age.
Presence of Jamaat leaders at
EC meeting embarrasses law
minister, left leaders
Staff Correspondent Law and parliamentary affairs minister Shafique Ahmed and two left leaders were embarrassed by the presence of Jamaat-e-Islami leaders at an Election Commission programme on Saturday.
President and general secretaries of all the political parties registered with the EC were invited to attend the inaugural season of a two-day programme on Meeting on Cooperation of Election Commissions in the South Asia Region at a city hotel.
Jammat chief Matiur Rahman Nizami, his deputy Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, Workers’ Party president Rashed Khan Menon and Communist Party of Bangladesh president Monzurul Ahsan Khan attended the meeting. Law minister Shafique Ahmed also attended the meeting as chief guest.
No representatives, however, from the ruling Awami League and the main opposition BNP were present at the programme.
Law minister Shafique Ahmed told the reporters that despite being reluctant to attend because of the presence of the Jamaat, he felt he had to attend the programme as he was invited by the chief election commissioner himself.
‘At first, I decided not to attend the programme, but as the CEC personally requested and many foreign guests had also been invited to the meeting, I had to go there,’ he added.
Menon and Monzurul separately told reporters that they would not have attended the programme if they had known about Jamaat’s presence.
‘I did not sit beside them (Jamaat leaders). I sat on the other side,’ Menon said.
The Jammat leaders sat on right side of the first row while Menon and Monzurul and some civil society members took their seats on the left side.
Jamaat, a registered party having representation in the parliament, is accused of its having a controversial role while some of its leaders are alleged of having committed crimes against humanity during the war of independence in 1971.
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