Political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), and Jatiya Party, have strongly condemned the shooting of Sharif Osman Hadi, a prospective independent candidate for Dhaka-8, on Friday and demanded the immediate arrest of those responsible.

BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman condemned the armed attack on Hadi and emphasised the need for national unity, stating that the country is currently passing through a critical crisis.

The party also announced a nationwide demonstration for Saturday to protest the attack on Hadi and a BNP leader in Chattogram.

“Those who seek to destroy the country’s independence, sovereignty, and stability have initiated their conspiracy, as evidenced by the attack on Osman Hadi,” Tarique said, calling upon all political leaders to forge maximum unity and remain vigilant ahead of the national election scheduled for 12 February next year.

Tarique made the call hours after armed assailants fired at Hadi, a probable independent candidate for the Dhaka-8 parliamentary constituency, in the Bijoynagar area of the capital on Friday afternoon.

“In these circumstances, I am urging all citizens and political parties that believe in the country’s independence and sovereignty to unite, as the nation is going through a critical crisis,” he expressed.

Addressing a programme virtually from London, held at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh (KIB) Convention Hall in Dhaka, he noted that a BNP-nominated candidate in Chattogram had faced a similar attack a few days earlier.

Highlighting the need for strong unity among nationalist forces amid the evolving situation, Tarique said, “Over the past year, we have observed members of various organisations threatening to prevent the authorities from holding the national election in February next year.

“Because of this, those of us who believe in the principle of ‘Bangladesh first’ must be more united than ever,” added the BNP leader during the sixth day of the party’s seven-day programme, ‘Plan to Build the Nation’, chaired by BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

Meanwhile, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, on his verified Facebook page, said, “Whatever our ideology, we must collectively reject those who resort to politics based on fear and force.”

Wishing Hadi a speedy recovery, Fakhrul urged the interim government and relevant authorities to take swift action in this matter.

BNP to stage nationwide protest on Saturday

BNP announced in a press statement that it will hold nationwide processions on Saturday, protesting the attack on Hadi and a recent attack on Ershad Ullah, the party-nominated candidate for the upcoming parliamentary election from Chattogram.

The statement urged leaders and activists from BNP’s various fronts and affiliated organisations to ensure the success of the demonstrations.

No laxity on govt’s side to be tolerated: Jamaat

After visiting Hadi at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Jamaat Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman condemned the attack and warned against attempts to establish “a new reign of fascism or terror” in the country. “If anyone wants to establish a new reign of fascism or terror in Bangladesh, they will get a befitting reply. People will thwart all conspiracies. No one will be allowed to commit such a dirty act,” he added.

“No kind of laxity on the part of the government will be tolerated in this matter. We want to see the government promptly discharge its responsibility in this regard.”

In a statement, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar said the incident raised serious concerns about election-time security.

“The shooting one of a July warrior and an MP candidate the day after the announcement of election schedule has seriously questioned the security situation during the election. This appears to be a clear attempt to create fear,” he said.

Porwar noted Hadi had publicly stated on 13 November that he had received death threats from 30 foreign numbers and that his family members had also been threatened. “It is clear to the countrymen that the administration has failed to provide him with security, which amounts to serious negligence in providing security to the lives and property of citizens. We condemn this evasion of responsibility by the administration,” he said.

“We hope that the government and administration will take the incident seriously and quickly arrest the perpetrators, bring them to justice, and provide exemplary punishment,” he added.

The Jamaat secretary general also wished for speedy recovery of Osman Hadi and expressed his condolences to his family and colleagues.

An attack on democratic momentum: NCP

Nahid Islam, convener of NCP, said this was not a separate incident and expressed concerned about the overall security situation.

“The fallen Awami League is a security threat to the general people of Bangladesh. We who took part in the July revolution, July fighters, and Martyred families all are in under threat,” he said.

“There is a big conspiracy behind this. This is the part of the conspiracy which was created after 5 August to unstable the country. The student-public thwarted the conspiracy again and again. We will stand tall with Hadi Bhai, and we will uphold the July sprit that he upholds. Our banner might be different, but we are united in question of July,” he added.

Meanwhile, the NCP also condemned the attack in a statement signed by media cell secretary Mushfik Us Salehin.

“The attack raises serious questions about the deteriorating law and order situation in the country and the fragility of the electoral environment. The government and law enforcement agencies have not taken any effective measures to ensure the safety of Sharif Osman Hadi, despite his public announcement of the threat before the attack,” the statement read.

It also read that the government’s utter failure to ensure security despite repeated cocktail attacks in front of the NCP office and threats to a candidate are naked examples of irresponsibility, incompetence and indifference.

The party then alleged that remnants of the banned Awami League’s “armed network” were still attempting to destabilise the country.

“If the forces of the mass uprising are divided, the fallen fascist Awami League and the anti-national clique, who have corrupted politics through killing and violence in the past, will take the chance,” the statement read.

Govt must be tough to combat terrorists: Islami Andolan

Islami Andolan Bangladesh condemned the attack on Hadi and demanded immediate arrest of the perpetrators of the attack to book them to justice.

In a written statement, the Islami Andolan Bangladesh’s Joint Secretary General Gazi Ataur Rahman said their party ameer had expressed deep concern over the incident.

He said the government must be tough to combat terrorists as the fallen fascists would try to foil the upcoming election.

Incident deeply concerning: Jatiya Party

Jatiya Party and Jatiya Democratic Front Chairman Anisul Islam Mahmud and Jatiya Party Secretary General and the alliance spokesperson ABM Ruhul Amin Howlader also expressed deep concern and strong condemnation over the shooting of Hadi.