Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader has said the central leadership of the ruling party did not order the recent attacks on the BNP.
The Awami League leader also threatened their party members with action for acting without permission, reports bdnews24.com.
Speaking at an event in Dhaka on Monday, the ruling party general secretary said the BNP alleged attacks in Cumilla and Dhaka but their factions fought each other in Barishal and Chattogram.
Blaming the BNP for the clashes, he warned the leaders and activists of the Awami League: “If someone gets involved in these clashes without the leader’s [Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s] orders, we will take punitive measures against them. No one will be let off the hook.”
“The Awami League won’t tolerate if someone damages the party and the government’s image with sporadic incidents.”
Quader criticised the BNP for “complaining to foreign diplomats” about the clashes.
He said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir revealed the party’s “love for Pakistan” by saying that the people were better off during the Pakistani rule than they are now.
“We’ve taken a vow that we won’t hand our country, which was liberated through a war, to pro-Pakistan forces.
“BNP leaders have alleged that the Awami League cannot tolerate Pakistan. They are right. We fought Pakistan to liberate the country. Why wouldn’t it disgust us when we hear the name of Pakistan?”
He pointed out that Pakistan has not apologised in 50 years for the 1971 genocide, and said: “Why do you have so much love for Pakistan? Does it prove that [BNP founder] Ziaur Rahman masterminded Bangabandhu’s assassination to avenge Pakistan’s loss?”