Editorial
Lawmaker breaking the law
It was neither right and nor honourable
If people are generally disgruntled with our polity they have every reason to be. Just look at what the Right Honourable Member of the Parliament for Rangpur-1, belonging to JP (E), did at the Rangpur Medical College Hospital the other day. It was neither right, nor, by any definition, honourable. People continue to be surprised by irrational acts of people in position of power.
In this instance the said MP had led a five-truckload of his supporters, all armed with bamboo sticks, demanding quota for jobs at the hospital for his men. What ensued was only inevitable. But we wonder why the police allowed the MP's men to enter the hospital premises in the first place.
The three-way pitched 'battle' that eventuated between the MP's thugs, the hospital staff and the police, resulted in injuries to many including the MP himself, several newspapermen and a large number of policemen. Apart from that the more than one hour of disturbance at the hospital premises completely disrupted the function of the hospital putting many patients in great distress.
We look at the incident with great deal of alarm, it being precipitated by none other than an elected representative of the people. In the first place is it for the MP to force jobs from the authorities? Is it a matter of right for political parties or their affiliates to do so? We understand that on January 19 and 25 the director of the same hospital was locked in his office by the members of the local BCL and the AL Rangpur unit respectively, demanding jobs for their supporters.
And even if the allegation by the MP, of lack of transparency, administrative incompetence, corruption and nepotism, against the hospital director were true, what he did was not the way to register one's protest or grievances. His action amounted to a riotous act and we are surprised that he has not been charged with under the appropriate section of the law.
We would like to emphasise that no one is above the law. And an act of violence and breach of peace must be dealt with severely.
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