An office of the banned Awami League’s north district unit, located in the Dost Building of Chattogram’s New Market area, has reportedly been vandalised and taken over by a leader of National Citizen Party (NCP).
According to witnesses, a group of youths led by Arif Moinuddin – joint coordinator of the NCP’s Chattogram city committee and former convener of the Anti-Discrimination Students’ Movement, took control of the office on Tuesday afternoon. Several former members of the same student organisation accompanied him.
A video went viral on Facebook, showing a group of young men vandalising a mural of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman inside the office. The footage also showed Arif Moinuddin along with a few NCP and former student leaders present at the scene.
The Dost Building has long housed offices of several political and social organisations, including the BNP, BASAD, and Ganosamhati Andolon. Following the fall of the Awami League government in the student-led uprising of 5 August last year, part of the building was vandalised and subsequently sealed off.
Attempts to contact Moinuddin over the phone went unanswered. However, speaking to the media, he claimed that banned Awami League activists had been holding secret meetings in the office at night.
“When we went there and spoke to the security guard, he initially denied it. But after breaking the lock, we found evidence of political activities inside. So, we have locked the office for now and will monitor the premises for the next two days,” he said.
Moinuddin further claimed that the building is essentially abandoned property left behind by Biharis after 1971 and now houses offices of multiple parties, including the Awami League, BNP, and Ganosamhati Andolon.
Abdul Malek, an assistant at the office, told reporters that the AL office had remained closed since 5 August and no one had been there since. “Around 3:30pm on Tuesday, over a hundred NCP activists stormed in, vandalised furniture, and occupied the office. They stayed there until around 7:45pm,” he said.
Contacted around 7:30pm, NCP central joint chief organiser and regional supervisor for Chattogram, Jobairul Hasan Arif, said, “I have heard that some members of an organisation linked to July went there. I will need about half an hour to verify whether anyone from the NCP was involved.”
Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Abdul Karim confirmed the incident, saying, “We have heard about it but have not received any written complaint yet. Once a complaint is filed, we will investigate and take necessary action.”
