Staff Correspondent
NCP’s roadshow in Cox’s Bazar disrupted after BNP activists pull down stage
A street rally organised by the National Citizens’ Party (NCP) in Cox’s Bazar’s Chakaria was disrupted Saturday afternoon when local BNP and Chhatra Dal activists pulled down its makeshift stage.
The incident took place around 3:45 pm at the Janata Shopping Centre square, where the NCP had set up a stage on a truck for the programme. Security forces, including the Army and police, arrived at the spot and dispersed the crowd soon after.
NCP leaders were scheduled to address the gathering around 5 pm. The party’s convenor Nahid Islam and several central leaders were on their way to the venue when the disruption occurred.
Eyewitnesses said a group of BNP and Chhatra Dal supporters arrived in a procession and began dismantling the stage. No major clash took place, as NCP activists reportedly stepped back from the area.
Chakaria Police Station officer-in-charge Mahbubul Alam said police and Army personnel brought the situation under control. “There was some unrest before the rally. The joint forces took immediate steps to disperse the crowd,” he said.
Local NCP coordinator Fazlul Haque claimed their event was peaceful and blamed political rivalry for the disruption. “We had no plan for confrontation. Our programme was public and peaceful,” he said.
A BNP leader from the area, who did not want to be named, said people would naturally resist what he called “provocative outsiders.” “This is our home ground. We won’t let anyone mislead the public here,” he said.
Tension had been building in the area over recent remarks made by NCP’s top organiser Nasiruddin Patwari. Speaking earlier in the day, he criticised BNP standing committee member Salahuddin Ahmed, without naming him, and said a “new godfather has arrived in Cox’s Bazar from Shillong.”
Salahuddin, a former MP of Cox’s Bazar-2 constituency, had criticised proportional representation (PR) voting during a BNP rally in Dhaka on Friday. He said those demanding PR polls and local government elections had “dishonest motives” and added that most people did not understand the system.
In response, Patwari told the NCP rally that Cox’s Bazar people would “resist those who oppose electoral reform.”
Police and Army remain deployed in Chakaria as of Saturday evening.