Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
BNP leaders Altaf Hossain Chowdhury and Shahjahan Omar were arrested by law enforcers amid escalating political turmoil ahead of national polls.
The two vice chairmen of the opposition group were apprehended on Saturday, the eve of the 48-hour blockade called by the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, reports bdnews24.com.
Altaf, a former Air Force chief, was detained from a house concealing himself in Tongi on the outskirts of Dhaka, RAB said. He was implicated in cases related to incidents involving attacks on the chief justice's residence, acts of sabotage, and instances of violence.
Altaf served as the home minister from 2001 to 2004 during the coalition government of the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.
He will be questioned regarding his role in the violent clashes that occurred during the BNP's anti-government rally on October 28.
Shahjahan was apprehended by the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police from a Gulshan residence on Saturday, according to his family. Later, Shahjahan was taken to the DB office on Minto Road.
Police have yet to release an official statement on Shahjahan's detention, and DB chief Harunor Rashid could not be reached for comment.
Deputy Commissioner Rifat Rahman Shamim of the DMP's Gulshan division said he was unaware of the matter.
On October 28, the BNP staged a mass rally in Naya Paltan to press for the formation of a non-partisan caretaker government during the election period amid mounting political tensions.
During the rally, BNP leaders and activists clashed with the police in Paltan, and the violence quickly spread to other areas of the city.
A police box and an ambulance in the police hospital were torched, while a dozen of vehicles were set ablaze. The chief justice's residence also came under attack. A police officer was beaten to death and a Jubo Dal activist was killed.
As many as 36 cases were filed with different police stations across Dhaka. Top BNP leaders, including Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Mirza Abbas, Amir Khosru, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Abdul Awal Mintu, and Barkatullah Bulu, have been named in cases related to the violence.