Stressing the government’s ongoing efforts to recover illegal arms and improve the law-and-order situation, Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury on Monday said the nationwide special drive will continue until the national election.

“Although we haven’t been able to recover all the arms that have gone missing, efforts are going on. This special drive is being carried out across the country and will continue until the election,” he told reporters after a meeting of the Law and Order Core Committee at the Secretariat.

He said mob violence will come down to zero and no leniency will be shown in such cases. The election will be held under the current law enforcement agencies and it will be conducted smoothly, the adviser said.

The Adviser emphasised that discussions at the meeting covered all aspects of national security, including recent incidents and potential future challenges.

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“We focus particularly on drug-related crimes, which have become a major issue. While many Yaba smugglers are being held, the big players are still at large. We are working to bring them under the law,” Alam Chowdhury said.

Asked whether there was any security concern surrounding August 5, he replied, “You are better judges of how things were on August 5 after the Awami League had left office. Compare that with today. Whether there’s been any improvement is for you to assess.”

Admitting that the law-and-order situation in Bangladesh has never matched international standards, he said they could not reach that level but prayed for the future government to do so.

On public concerns over unrest, especially on August 5, Alam Chowdhury dismissed any fear, saying, “There’s no reason to panic. All programmes will be held peacefully, InshaAlah. We just need your cooperation in covering these events responsibly.”

On election-related violence, he reaffirmed that the government is training forces and increasing deployment to maintain peace.

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In response to concerns about unequal police protection, the adviser said all parties receive security based on vulnerability assessments provided by agencies and media inputs.