Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Saturday alleged that the government had taken a move to raise the electricity and fuel tariffs every year to boost the ruling party leaders’ deposits with Swiss banks through plundering.

‘The government has shamelessly taken a move to raise the tariffs of power and fuel several times a year by force amid a controversy over ghost electricity bills,’ said BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

Speaking at a human-chain programme, he further said, ‘The government has placed a bill in the parliament to suck people’s blood by increasing the prices of electricity and fuel. We strongly protest the move.’

Future of Bangladesh, a pro-BNP platform, arranged the programme in front of BNP’s Nayapaltan central office protesting at the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (Amendment) Bill 2020.

On Tuesday, state minister for power, energy and mineral resources Nasrul Hamid placed the bill in the parliament to empower the BERC to make any change in tariff more than once in every financial year. Currently, the law permits the BERC to make any change in tariffs once in a financial year.

Rizvi said the government was realising money from people in different ways to create scopes for ruling party men to indulge in ‘plundering’ and amassing ‘ill-gotten’ wealth.

Referring to media reports, he said Bangladeshis deposited over Tk 5,000 crores with Swiss banks. ‘Minister, bureaucrats and ruling party leaders did it by misappropriating public money over the last 12 years,’ he said.

‘They need more money as they need to deposit more black money with the Swiss banks. That’s why they’re trying to increase the prices of electricity and fuel frequently,’ Rizvi alleged.

The BNP leader said newspapers were running news on ghost electricity bills, but the government is hardly concerned about that.

About the COVID-19 situation, he alleged that people were dying due to lack of treatment as hospitals lacked oxygen cylinders and other necessary equipment.

The BNP leader further alleged, ‘Prime minister Sheikh Hasina is running the country like an emperor and what she says is a law. People who are talking about the government are being sent to jail and implicated in false cases.’

‘We would like to say, we would continue our protest. We’re ready to go to jail. But people will not accept your repression and suppression,’ Rizvi added.