Published : 17 Jul 2025, 09:39 PM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 01:32 PM
National Citizen Party (NCP) Convenor Nahid Islam has squarely blamed the government and law-enforcing agencies for the deadly violence in Gopalganj, saying the situation could have been prevented with “timely and proper action”.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, a day after the deadly clashes, Nahid demanded a “fair investigation and trial of the attackers”.
“The government and the administration must take responsibility. Arrests must be made based on specific information, not only in Gopalganj but across the country,” he wrote.
At least four people were killed on Wednesday when Awami League supporters attacked an NCP rally in Gopalganj, triggering pitched battles with police as the town descended into chaos over the course of five hours.
Several central NCP leaders, trapped inside the superintendent of police’s office, were later escorted out of the town by the Army in armoured vehicles.
The NCP leaders later held a press conference in Khulna that same night amid an overnight curfew imposed to restore order in the Gopalganj area.
At the briefing, Nahid claimed the assault on the NCP rally was “a Mujibist terrorist attack intended to kill”, likening the assault to militant tactics. He gave the government a 24-hour ultimatum to arrest those responsible.
Reiterating his accusations in Thursday’s Facebook post, Nahid wrote: “We will free Gopalganj and all of Bangladesh from Mujibist fascism and terror.
“The Awami League has for decades endangered lives in Gopalganj, tarnished the Liberation War, and discriminated against followers of the Hindu faith. We have vowed to end this situation.”
He added, “We did not call for war. Ours was a pre-declared peaceful programme. Mujibist terrorists launched an armed and deliberate attack on us with the intent to kill, just as they did during the July Uprising. The Awami League is always seeking to provoke civil war.”
Referring to the upcoming post-Aug 5 political phase, Nahid said: “Some people want to present a ‘refined Awami League’. They should remember: the Awami League is no longer a political party -- it is a terrorist organisation.”
He continued: “We have said time and again since Aug 5 that we want legal and judicial action against the July massacre. But [Bangladesh] Chhatra League and Awami League men have not been arrested in large numbers. Even when arrested, they are securing bail or fleeing from police custody.”
Nahid also accused corrupt bureaucrats and “collaborators of fascism” of embedding themselves deep within the administration.
“They can be bought. Chhatra League leaders from across the country, despite being part of a banned group, were present in Gopalganj yesterday,” he said.
According to Nahid, “Security forces issued us clearance even after early morning sabotage, based on their instructions. We entered Gopalganj and held a roadside rally, not a march. Our people from various Upazilas were blocked and buses stopped, but we completed our peaceful event nonetheless.”
“While we were leaving, armed Awami League terrorists launched their attack. We followed the security forces’ instructions in exiting Gopalganj,” he said.
Confirming the death toll, Nahid said: “We do not support or expect extrajudicial killings. The attackers must face trial. If the administration and intelligence agencies had taken the right steps at the right time, this situation could have been averted.”
“We had committed to going to Gopalganj, and we did. We now take an oath on the blood of martyrs that Mujibism will not take root in Gopalganj or Bangladesh,” Nahid said.
“We will return to Gopalganj. As long as we live, we will organise programmes in every village and every Upazila of Gopalganj. The flag of the July Uprising will fly from every home. Gopalganj will belong to pro-Bangladesh forces, not to the Mujibists,” he vowed.
