Dhaka: Criticising the government for its ‘delayed operation’ to overcome the Gulshan café hostage crisis, BNP on Wednesday said people think many more lives could have been saved had the commando operation been conducted promptly without dying the time.

‘The country’s people believe that, so many lives had been lost due to the government’s indecision and procrastination to face Friday’s overnight hostage crisis at Gulshan café,’ said BNP Senior Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

He came up with the observation at a press briefing at BNP’s Naya Paltan central office.

The BNP leader also slammed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for inaugurating the Dhaka-Chittagong four-lane Highway in grand style soon after the commando operation at Gulshan café as the entire nation were worried and shocked at that time.

‘When people at home and abroad have been disappointed and dejected over the loss of so many people at Gulshan café, the Prime Minister could have done without inaugurating the four-lane highway immediately after the commando operation on Saturday morning,’ he said.

Rizvi also came down hard on the ruling party leaders for tagging conditions for the national unity to face extremism and terrorism, saying the government is trying to keep up with the politics of division.

‘We want to say that national unity can’t be forged by giving any condition. We have to now get united and create national unity to stop the destructive activity of the evil forces. But the ruling party is waling on the path of politics of division by giving conditions,’ said the BNP leader.