Home Affairs Adviser Lieutenant General (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has instructed police to arrest Awami League men immediately upon sight, without checking whether cases are filed against them.
“There is no need to see if there are cases against Awami League’s criminals. They must be brought under the law as soon as they are seen. Otherwise, action will be taken against the police,” he said.
The adviser made the comments on Wednesday afternoon in front of the BKMEA headquarters in Chashara, Narayanganj, where leaders and activists of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement staged a protest by surrounding him and placing seven demands.
The seven demands include recovery of weapons looted during the July movement; arrest of the prime accused in the shooting of Sharif Osman Hadi; stopping alleged commercialisation of Anti-Discrimination murder cases; halting lobbying to rehabilitate Awami League criminals; preventing criminal gangs and curbing drugs; and strengthening border security while stopping border killings.
Protesters told the adviser that many Awami League members were still present in the area and that police had claimed there were no cases against them. In response, the adviser said there was no need to verify whether cases existed and warned that action would be taken against police officers if they failed to act.
When journalists raised questions about weapons, protesters asked why the adviser had spoken about potatoes. Responding, Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said the program was organised by the Ministry of Agriculture and that farmers’ issues are often ignored. He added that he also holds responsibility for the agriculture ministry.
Assuring the protesters, the adviser said their demands were justified and that several steps had already been taken.
He said Sharif Osman Hadi was critically ill and urged everyone to pray for his recovery.
He added that although the main accused in the shooting had not yet been arrested, the weapon used in the attack had been recovered and an associate of the prime accused had been arrested and placed on remand.
Eyewitnesses and local sources said the adviser had attended a program at the BKMEA headquarters where six mini pickup vans were handed over to the district police and industrial police. After the program ended, leaders and activists—including Mahfuz Khan, Meherab Hossain Provat, and Nazmul Islam—surrounded the adviser and reiterated their seven-point demand, including the arrest of the prime accused in the shooting of Sharif Osman Hadi.
