Police Headquarters has issued a clarification regarding statements made by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Md. Ali Hossain Fakir.
They claimed that the IGP did not use the term “crossfire” to imply extrajudicial killings or punishment outside the judicial process.
This clarification was released on Monday in response to media reports and criticism surrounding the IGP’s speech during the inauguration of the Chawkbazar Islamic Banking branch of Community Bank in the capital’s Chawkbazar.
In the statement issued by Police Headquarters on Monday evening, it was noted, “The IGP expressed the firm commitment of the police to take effective action against drug traffickers, goons, extortionists, and criminals who pose a threat to public safety. In illustrating the strict enforcement of the law, he referred to the term ‘crossfire’ in a literal sense. He did not use the word with the intention of denoting extrajudicial killings or imposing punishment outside the judicial framework.”
The clarification from Police Headquarters further stated that one of the primary duties of Bangladesh Police is crime prevention, the arrest of offenders, the maintenance of public order, and safeguarding the lives and property of citizens.
According to the statement, while discharging these duties, police officers frequently face direct resistance and attacks from criminals, organised mobs, and lawbreakers.
The statement highlighted that during the first 10 months of 2026, as many as 176 attacks were carried out against the police while maintaining law and order, arresting criminals, preventing illegal activities, and performing official duties.
In these attacks, four police officers were killed and 370 were severely injured, the statement mentioned.
It added that existing national laws, specifically the Penal Code, 1860; the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898; and the Police Act, 1861, explicitly define the right of self-defence for police personnel.
Meanwhile, Police Headquarters also addressed the IGP’s comments regarding journalists made at the same event.
The statement noted that he did not intend to make a blanket observation about journalists, and that the remark occurred inadvertently.