Apart from large-scale arrest, police have started searching vehicles and suspected people while entering the capital as BNP’s preparations are on to stage demonstrations in the city if their chairperson is ‘unfairly’ convicted in a graft case on Thursday.

A BNP senior leader said they asked their party followers to take position around the makeshift special court set up in Dhaka’s Bakshibazar area from Thursday morning, defying all the obstacles in order to stage a big demonstration if Khaleda is convicted in the Zia Orphanage Trust Graft case, reports the UNB.

He, however, said they will prefer getting arrested than getting involved in any clash if the law enforcers obstruct them from registering their protest.

As tensions escalating ahead of the verdict, police and RAB have also set up check-posts at 13 entry points of the capital and started searching vehicles and suspected people to prevent unwarranted people from entering the city.

The law enforcers also have a plan to stop entering any type of vehicles in the capital from different parts of the country on Thursday so that no BNP leader and activist can come to Dhaka to ‘create any trouble’, a top police official at the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) told UNB wishing anonymity.

The movement of vehicles is likely to be restricted from early Thursday to prevent BNP leaders and activists from gathering at any point to stage demonstrations.

Meanwhile, the operators of different inter-city and long-distance bus services said they will not run their vehicles on Thursday, fearing political violence.

Many of them even said they will stop their services from Wednesday night.

According to sources at the DMP, law enforcers arrested around 350 suspected people since Tuesday midnight from Monday evening from the city’s different areas.

Police will also continue their drives at different residential hotels, mess-houses of students and bachelors to detain the suspected rowdy people.

Police and detectives are also keeping their sharp eyes on Sadarghat Launch Terminal and Kamalapur Railway Station and other bus terminals so that no troublemaker can enter the city.

Besides, important city points, bus and launch terminals and rail stations, have been brought under CCTV cameras to check untoward incidents.

As part of their steps, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) on Tuesday imposed a ban on holding any procession and carrying sharp weapons, explosives, flammable materials in the capital on Thursday.

Over 30,000 police alongside the adequate members of RAB, detective branch of police and other intelligence agencies will be deployed at the city’s different important points, including in and around the special court areas and all the entry points of the city.

DMP deputy commissioner (media) Masudur Rahman said adequate plainclothes police and members of different intelligence agencies will be there at the city’s different strategic points alongside the several thousand regular police members so that no one can break the law. ‘We’ll take lawful actions if any one tires to create any trouble. We won’t tolerate any type of chaos over the court verdict.’ 

Meanwhile, IGP Mohammad Javed Patwary held a meeting with the chiefs of different police units across the country through videoconferencing on Tuesday afternoon and gave them necessary directions to maintain law and order on February 8.

Police officials at a meeting, led by the IGP, last week decided not to allow BNP members to stand on the streets on Thursday.

The police headquarters also sent a letter to the superintendents of police across the country alerting them of the evolving situation on Thursday and giving them necessary directions to deal with that effectively.

In the letter, the police headquarters said miscreants may try to create an anarchic situation by taking positions in large number in Dhaka and other big cities and towns, circulate misleading information on the social media, and attack law enforcers, public transport and important government establishments.

To face the possible situations, the police authorities also mentioned some directions, including intensifying security at important and strategic points, all the police stations and offices of police and other key public establishments, setting up check posts, keeping all the CCTV under police watch in operation, identifying possible vulnerable spots, strengthening intelligence agencies’ activities, increasing the number of police in patrol teams, taking steps to capture the photos of troublemakers, collecting photographs of untoward incidents from journalists and mobilising public opinions about violent acts.

Meanwhile, Chittagong Metropolitan Police on Wednesday imposed a restriction on vehicular movement and carrying sharp weapons, explosives, flammable materials in the port city on Thursday.

Security measures have been beefed up in three state-owned oil installations in Chittagong.

Vehicular movement stretching from Cement Crossing to  Potenga Ghat No 11 (Marine Academy Ghat) has been suspended for two days to save those from any kind of sabotage, said a CMP press release on Tuesday night.

At the party’s national executive committee meeting on Saturday last, BNP leaders vowed to ensure the peaceful presence of huge number of their followers on the streets in Dhaka and other parts of the country to register their protest if any ‘injustice’ is done to Khaleda Zia in the Zia Orphanage Trust Graft case.

However, BNP is unlikely to go for any violent programme like hartal and blockade even if Khaleda Zia is convicted apparently to avoid violence and not to lose public sympathy ahead of the next general election. 

Party senior leaders said they will carefully try to avoid any violence and they have asked their party men not to respond to any provocation by ruling party men and law enforcers. 

Awami League senior leaders said they will remain alert on the day so that their main rival party activists cannot create any anarchic situation over the court verdict.

BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi denounced the DMP’s ban of public gathering on Thursday, calling it an unfair act in the name of law. ‘People will definitely go for registering their protest. We’ll do it in a democratic manner.’