Refrain from the election, otherwise there will be a fate like Osman Hadi – Threat to BNP candidate!

Ahead of the 13th National Parliament election, BNP nominated candidate for Cox’s Bazar-4 (Ukhia-Teknaf) constituency and former MP Shahjahan Chowdhury has been threatened to withdraw from the election. He was threatened through a letter sent by post, to which a piece of white cloth—the alleged shroud—was attached.

The former MP from Ukhia-Teknaf received the letter on Sunday (January 4) afternoon. The date on the envelope is 23-12-25. The name of Mominul Alam has been written as the Cox’s Bazar regional coordinator of the alleged ‘Battalion-71’ as the sender of the letter.

The letter said, “Sir, Assalamu Alaikum. I hope you are busy with the elections. I request you to refrain from participating in the upcoming national parliament elections. Otherwise, the consequences will be like Sharif Osman Hadi. I hope you understand. You are under the surveillance of our killing squad for 24 hours. I have sent you a shroud as a gift.”

Immediately after learning about the incident, BNP Chairperson Tarique Rahman contacted District BNP President Shahjahan Chowdhury over the phone. He inquired about the incident and assured of overall cooperation.

In this regard, Shahjahan Chowdhury said, “Party chief Tarique Rahman inquired and assured to be by your side. In the current situation, I and my family are suffering from extreme insecurity. The rest is up to Allah.”

He said that a general diary (GD) has been filed with Ukhia Police Station to take legal action in the case of the flying letter.

Meanwhile, Election Commissioner Brigadier General Abul Fazal Mohammad Sanaullah (retd) held a meeting on the law and order situation in Shahjahan Chowdhury's constituency on Sunday afternoon. During the meeting, when Ukhia Upazila BNP General Secretary Sultan Mahmud Chowdhury raised the issue of threats, the Election Commissioner assured to look into the matter seriously and take necessary action.

Ukhia Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Nur Ahmed said, "The general diary has been received. The matter is being looked into seriously and appropriate action will be taken to ensure the candidate's safety."