Police detained 18 Union Parishad (UP) members from a gathering at a resort in Cox's Bazar's Hotel-Motel Zone early today on charge of holding "secret meeting".
The members were holding meeting at a hall room on the fifth-floor of the resort.
According to the participants, the gathering, organised by the Bangladesh Union Members Organisation's Cox's Bazar branch, focused on the "Role of Root-Level Public Representatives in State Reform, Democracy, and Local Development".
Around 70 representatives were attending the meeting when police, along with the activists from anti-discrimination student movement, stormed into the hall room and detained 18 of the participants, said Faizul Azim Noman, officer-in-charge (OC) of Cox's Bazar Sadar Model Police Station.
"The operation was based on information that Awami League-backed UP members were conducting a secret meeting. The identities of the detainees are being verified. it is also being checked whether any of them are facing any charges," the OC said.
One of the detainees, Zahir Ahmed, UP member of Teknaf Sadar Union Parishad, denied allegations of holding "clandestine meeting", saying, "If it was secret, we wouldn't meet inside the roadside hotel. We're being harassed."
Another attendee, Mohammad Salim from Moheshkhali, who was not picked up, added, "Representatives of all political affiliations were present. I strongly condemn the arrests of our colleagues."
