Attack on Hadi and a complacent home adviser

The shooting of Sharif Osman Hadi on Friday afternoon in the city's Paltan area has left the entire nation shell-shocked. He is reportedly in a critical condition now and fighting for his life at Evercare Hospital. Hadi, an independent MP candidate from the Dhaka-8 constituency, has been in the vanguard of keeping the flame of the July movement alive.  A symbol of ardent patriotic spirit, he has been tirelessly working to resist fascism and to bring about a qualitative change in the country's political culture. 

Ever since the July-August uprising, his activism, to free politics from money and muscle power, and connect it with the grassroots has touched a chord with many. Lately, his unique campaign as an MP candidate has received an overwhelming response from the masses. Beginning after Fajr prayers at a mosque in his constituency, he and his team campaigned all day long, mostly on foot or riding a rickshaw or van. Video footage of these simple, down-to-earth campaigns and his inspiring speeches has sparked massive engagement and adulation on social media. 

So, when Hadi was shot in the city's Paltan area on Friday noon, the news spread like wildfire, sending a shockwave across the country. He was riding a rickshaw when the assailants shot him from a running motorcycle and sped away. 

The brutal attack has left a  deep wound in the heart all democratic-minded people of the country. Many see the assault on Hadi as an attack on the very existence of Bangladesh, designed to intimidate the leaders and activists of the July movement and to derail the forthcoming election.

However, if the motive of the attackers was to put a dampener on the July movement of mass awakening, it is bound to fail. Judging by the morale of the youth and their resolve,    it is clear they are united in seeking  justice for Hadi.

But the attack, coming just a day after the announcement of Election schedule, laid bare the appalling state of law and order. Concerns about a deteriorating law order situation have been repeatedly voiced since the interim government assumed power. But how could it have sunk so low as to allow criminals to shoot an MP candidate in broad daylight, at the very heart of the city, and make a safe escape? 

It belies Home Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury's claim that there is "no risk" of the security situation deteriorating before the polls. Worse, he appears to have trivialised the issue and treated it lightly. Very recently when journalists raised questions about missing firearms and election-time security risks, he talked about onion and potato prices, deliberately and almost sarcastically sidestepping the issue. Such conduct suggests not only a disregard for journalists' questions, but also an alarming indifference to the grave security threats on the ground. As many as 1,300 firearms looted from police stations during last year's turmoil remain unrecovered. While unlicensed and looted arms remain in good numbers and circulate and change hands within the country, more are reportedly arriving by clandestine routes. So, in the drive to improve law and order, recovery of illegal firearms must be the top priority. 

With incidents of violence and murder occurring almost daily and law and order seriously deteriorating, the attack on Hadi has further intensified safety concerns for key figures of the July movement, many of whom are set to contest the upcoming election. So, the attempt on Hadi's life demands a dual response. First, the law enforcers must go all out to track down the assailant and their backers. At the same time, the government must ensure the security of young candidates contesting the polls, whose safety is at risk amid intense political rivalry and threats from elements of the fallen regime. Second, all the stakeholders of the July uprising must make a fresh resolve to thwart any plot to hinder the country's democratic transition.

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