Responding to Hasnat Abdullah's explosive statement about the army chief's suggestion of rehabilitating a refined Awami League, the army has dismissed saying it is 'absolutely laughable' as reported by Netra News.

The Sweden-based news portal, confirmed that the meeting between a frontline NCP leader, Hasnat, and the army chief, Waker-uz-Zaman, did indeed take place. However, according to the statement given to Netra News, the July uprising leader turned politician was not at all pressured into accepting a deal to rehabilitate Awami League.

Netra further reports that Hasnat and Sarjis Alam, both of whom have been the most visible faces of the uprising, were not "summoned" to the cantonment. "Instead, it insisted, the meeting occurred at the request of Abdullah and another coordinator of his party, Sarjis Alam, who had long sought a 'courtesy meeting' with General Waker-uz-Zaman," reports Netra News quoting the army statement they have secured.

Currently appointed as the chief organiser of Bangladesh South of the National Citizen Party, Hasnat had posted on Facebook, around 2am on Friday that a conspiracy was afoot to rehabilitate the Awami League at the behest of India.

He said it has been suggested that the "refined" version of the party, would be led by former minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury, former parliament speaker, Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, and former Dhaka mayor, Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh who would publicly denounce Hasina's legacy. In exchange, Hasnat's post read, they were proposed "seat sharing agreements", most likely in the parliament.

The post went viral in Bangladesh, with hundreds of thousands of reactions, comments, and shares, garnering praise for the young activist for publicly challenging the military.

Netra News reports that the army statement said, "Sarjis Alam phoned the military adviser to the army chief to arrange the meeting, and was asked to come to army headquarters." Instead, the duo was said to have waited at Sena Bhaban, where the general met them after his official duties.

The army statement secured by Netra News states that the "chief had offered his opinion" that Awami League leaders not facing criminal charges should be included in the political process, noting that he regarded the young activists "like his sons."

"In reality, this is by no means a matter of summoning them and proposing or pressuring them about the rehabilitation of the Awami League," the statement said, as reported by Netra News.

The ISPR has yet to respond to The Daily Star's requests for comments on this matter.