BNP
Salam Talukder's 22nd death anniv Friday
The 22nd death anniversary of former BNP secretary general Barrister Abdus Salam Talukder will be observed on Friday.
Local BNP and Barrister Abdus Salam Talukder Smrity Sangsad have chalked out various programmes, including virtual discussion and milad mahfil, to observe the day with due respect.
Abdus Salam Talukder Smrity Sangsad will arrange a virtual discussion at 3pm marking the day. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and party senior leaders will join the programme
Also read: Govt keeping media busy with ‘dramas to hide failures’: BNP
Local BNP and Abdus Salam’s family members will arrange doa and milad mahfil in different areas of Jamalpur, including Sharishabari, and cooked food will be distributed among the destitute.
BNP issued a message recalling its former secretary general's outstanding contributions to making the party a stronger political organisation.
In the message, party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, "We pay our deep respect to his departed soul on his death anniversary."
He said Salam Talukder had played a significant role in the anti-Ershad movement in the 80s and in establishing democracy and people’s rights in Bangladesh.
Also read: BNP attributes Covid disaster to govt’s overreliance on bureaucrats
On August 20, 1999, Salam Talukder died on the way to Singapore for medical treatment.
Salam Talukder was elected MP from Sharishabari of Jamalpur in 1979 and 1991.
‘Govt unleashes its reign of terror,’ says Fakhrul
Condemning the attack on the residence of Barishal Sadar Upazila UNO reportedly by BCL activists, BNP on Thursday alleged that the government has unleashed its reign of terror in the country.
“The incident in Barisal has manifested that they (govt) have unleashed a reign of terror all over the country. Such incidents have been happening everywhere as the government has let loose the ruling party cadres,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
He came up with the allegation while talking to reporters after placing wreaths at BNP founder Ziaur Rahman’s grave along with the leaders and activists of Jatiyatabadi Swechchasebak Dal, marking its 41st founding anniversary.
Read: Corruption amid pandemic making life miserable: BNP
Fakhrul said the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists also padlocked the office room of Dhaka University Law Department Professor Asif Nazrul on the campus and threatened him with dire consequences. “Would you call it a civilised democratic country? It (current govt) is worse than Pakistanis.”
Police allowed a small number of Sewchchasebak Dal leaders to enter the grave premises of Zia following Tuesday’s clash between the law enforcers and leaders and activists of BNP’s Dhaka south and north units in the same area over a similar programme.
About Tuesday’s clash, Fakhrul said their party leaders and activists gathered in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area to peacefully place a wreath at Zia’s grave and offer fateha there marking the formation of new convening committees of BNP’s Dhaka north and south units.
“Our leaders and activists went there with emotion following the formation of the new committees. But they (police) could not tolerate it. They attack with arms whenever they see any public gathering. They admitted to firing 187 rounds of bullets. Can’t we even carry out peaceful programmes in a democratic country? It can’t go on like this,” he said.
The BNP leader alleged that the law enforcers and the ruling party ‘cadres’ are also obstructing BNP leaders and activists from distributing relief materials in different parts of the country.
He said the government has been trying to suppress the opposition leaders and activists with repressive acts so that they cannot raise their voice in favour of the country’s people.
Read: BNP leader Fakhrul turns 73
Fakhrul said at least 25 leaders and activists of their party were detained as they came to pay homage to Zia today (Thursday) while many others were arrested earlier following Tuesday’s clash.
He demanded the government to release all the arrested leaders and activists of BNP and its associate bodies and withdraw ‘false’ cases filed against them.
The BNP leader said the government’s main target is to establish a one-party rule in Baksal style by eliminating all the opposition parties.
Fakhrul warned that no fascist and authoritarian regime could hang onto power for a long time in the history of the world. “We must defeat this government together with people through a united movement.”
Khaleda to receive 2nd dose of Covid vaccine today
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia will receive the second dose of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine at Sheikh Russel Gastroliver Institute and Hospital on Thursday afternoon.
She is scheduled to leave her Gulshan residence around 2pm for the hospital to receive the vaccine shot, said her media wing member Sayrul Kabir Khan.
Read: Khaleda recovers from vaccine side effects
Party senior leaders and Khaleda’s personal physicians will be present there at the hospital.
Meanwhile, BNP chief’s personal secretary ABM Abdus Sattar sent a letter to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner seeking her security during the vaccination.
Earlier on July 19, Khaleda took the first dose of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine at the same hospital.
Read:Khaleda takes 1st dose of Covid vaccine
She registered online through Surokkha website for getting the vaccine on July 8.
On April 11, the 76-year-old BNP chief tested positive for Covid-19 and she was admitted to Evercare Hospital on April 27.
She tested negative for Covid-19 on May 8, 27, days after she had been infected with the deadly virus.
Read:Khaleda receives vaccination SMS: Dr Zahid
On June 19, Khaleda Zia got back home from the hospital after 53 days of treatment for Covid infections and other physical complications.
Amid the coronavirus outbreak, the government temporarily freed Khaleda Zia from jail through an executive order suspending her sentences on March 25 last year.
BNP activists clash with police at Chandrima Udyan
BNP activists clashed with police in front of Chandrima Udyan in the city on Tuesday while visiting Ziaur Rahman's grave after the formation of new city committees.
The clash broke out around 10:30 am when the newly-formed convening committees of BNP's Dhaka city north and south units went to place wreaths at the grave of the party's founder Ziaur Rahman.
Read:Public life at stake for mismanagement in vaccination drive: BNP
The new committees went to Chandrima Udyan to place wreaths at Zia's grave at 11 am on Tuesday.
Witnesses said some leaders and activists, including Aminul Haque, a member secretary of the BNP's Metropolitan North Committee and a former national team footballer, gathered at the park around 10:45 am. Then the police prevented them from going inside.
At that time, the police had an argument with Aminul Haque. At one stage, the police charged batons on them and fired teargas shells.
Aminul Hauqu, Convener of Dhaka Metropolitan north unit of BNP, said, "We've come here today to offer fateha at Ziaur Rahman's grave. But the police are not allowing us to stay there. At one point, police fired teargas shells and rubber bullets on us."
Jane Alam Munsi, officer-in-charge of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station, said, "The BNP activists were entering the field of Trade Fair which is they were not allowed to do. As there was an internal feud among BNP groups over forming the new convening committees, they started throwing brick chips on the police."
Read:BNP attributes Covid disaster to govt’s overreliance on bureaucrats
Later, police fired teargas shells and rubber bullets on them.
Bid to implicate Zia in Bangabandhu killing a political vengeance: Fakhrul
Condemning Law Minister’s statement on Zia’s link to Bangabandhu killing, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday said it is the government’s ill-effort to mislead people out of political vengeance.
“We (BNP) think the government is trying to mislead people by distorting history and falsehood only because of political retaliation. Such propaganda is just an attempt to hide facts,” said the BNP secretary general at a press conference.
Law Minister Anisul Haque said on Thursday said Ziaur Rahman was involved in the assassination of Bangabandhu and the evidence on it will be made public.
“The evidence of Ziaur Rahman's involvement in the assassination will be made public through a commission,” the minister said.
Read: Workers’ lives have little value to govt: Fakhrul
Talking about repeated incidents of vessel crashes under Parma Bridge, Mirza Fakhrul said the movement of ferries should have been shifted earlier from the Shimulia-Banglabazar route to avoid such incidents.
"It's a matter of common sense. The current is very strong in the river and it’s very natural that water vessels might get slightly diverted from course during this time,” he said.
“However, the situation has created a great opportunity for the ruling party and their men. They might try building a new ferry terminal all together citing the crisis. This would give them a chance to embezzle crores of taka in the new project,” Fakhrul said.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) on Friday night requested passengers to use Paturia ferry terminal, instead of Shimulia, to cross the mighty Padma River.
Read: Govt deceiving people over Covid vaccines: BNP
BIWTC authorities claimed that the ferry crisis on Shimulia-Banglabazar route is the reason for diverting vehicles to Paturia-Daulatdia route.
On Friday night, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader hinted that any one of Shimulia or Banglabazar ferry terminals might be shifted elsewhere to reduce the chances of such accidents.
In the past two months, at least five such accidents have happened in the district.
Public life at stake for mismanagement in vaccination drive: BNP
BNP on Thursday alleged that the mismanagement in the government’s Covid-19 vaccination drive has jeopardised the public life.
“There has been a complete mess in the vaccination campaign due to the government’s failure to face the pandemic,” said BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
Read: Frustration grows as chaos continues at Bangladesh’s vaccination centres
He made the remarks when he visited Banani Graveyard in the city to place wreaths and offer Fateha at the grave of Arafat Rahman Koko, the youngest son of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, marking his 52nd birth anniversary.
Fakhrul urged the government to collect adequate number of vaccine doses immediately and work sincerely for people announcing a roadmap to deal with the pandemic.
He alleged that the government has totally failed to manage corona. They (govt) shouldn’t be in power any more for its ill-planned lockdown and mismanagement in the vaccination drive. “This government should go right away.”
The BNP secretary general paid homage to Koko and recalled his role in the development of sports organisations and cricket.
Read:Mismanagement, politicization made vaccination drive a complete mess: BNP
BNP leaders Aman Ullah Aman, Abdus Salam, Fazlul Haque Milon, Syed Emran Saleh Prince, Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas, Aminul Haque and Rafiqul Alam Majnu, Jubo Dal leaders Saiful Alam Nirob and Sultan Salauddin Tuku, Swechchasebak Dal leaders Mustafizur Rahman and Abdul Kader Bhuiyan Jewell and Chhatra Dal leader Fazlul Ramna Khokon were, among others, present.
On January 23, 2015, Arafat Rahman Koko died of cardiac arrest in Malaysia at the age of 45.
BNP attributes Covid disaster to govt’s overreliance on bureaucrats
BNP on Monday alleged that the government has failed to tackle the Covid situation in the country due to its 'overdependence’ on bureaucrats.
“The government has completely failed to contain the coronavirus infection and it has put people’s lives and livelihoods in jeopardy,” said party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
Speaking at a virtual discussion, he also said their party has been calling upon the government since the beginning of the Covid outbreak to hold a national convention and form a national committee at all levels comprising all political parties, experts, social organisations and NGOs to tackle the situation with united efforts by involving people.
Read:Mismanagement, politicization made vaccination drive a complete mess: BNP
“It's unfortunate that this government didn’t pay heed to it. They’ve relied only on bureaucrats to create such a terrible corona situation. It can be called a complete mess because of politicisation, political meanness, and corruption,” the BNP leader observed.
The virtual programme was arranged by the family members of BNP Chairperson’s late adviser Fazlur Rahman Patal, marking his fifth death anniversary. Patal, a former state minister for youth and sports, died at an Indian hospital on August 11, 2016, at the age of 65.
Fakhrul said the country has probably been witnessing the worst Covid situation as the highly transmissible Delta variant of the virus has spread all over the country, including the rural areas.
He said the government did not take proper steps to prevent the spread of the virus to rural areas from cities despite repeated warnings. “They took time to seal the border. That’s why, the Delta variant of the Covid pandemic spread all over the country.”
The BNP leader said the government is hardly concerned about people’s lives and livelihoods as its main focus is on creating scopes for ruling party leaders to plunder public money.
He also accused the government of mocking people by enforcing ‘unplanned’ lockdowns and ‘unjustified restrictions’, badly affecting the normal public life.
The BNP leader also said the government has destroyed the economy delaying plans and actions to overcome the fallout of the pandemic. “They did nothing, except plundering public money. We clearly see that the GDP growth is decreasing gradually, but the government is lying about it. It wants to show an inflated GDP growth by force.”
Read:Reopen educational institutions with rigid health protocols: BNP
He said the trade, imports and production are also declining alongside the GDP. “But they’re not paying any attention to it.”
Fakhrul also said around two crore people have fallen below the poverty line afresh while many others, including day-labourers, rickshaw- and van-pullers, farm labourers, hawkers, small shop workers and those involved in the informal sector, have become unemployed.
Later, the BNP secretary general inaugurated a makeshift healthcare centre set up at Bagatipara in Natore under the supervision of the Patal’s wife Kamrunnahar Shirin and her children.
Mismanagement, politicization made vaccination drive a complete mess: BNP
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday alleged that the government has politicised the mass vaccination programme by deceiving the common people.
"Our standing committee thinks the government has indulged in mass deception in the name of mass vaccination without collecting enough vaccine doses. The mass vaccination campaign has become a drive to spread mass infection due to extreme mismanagement and politicisation,” he said.
Fakhrul came up with the remarks while unveiling the decisions of a virtual meeting of BNP standing committee at a press conference at the party chairperson’s Gulshan office. The meeting was held on Saturday evening.
Also read: Covid mortality rate high for lack of treatment: BNP
He said their party policymakers urged the government to take effective measures to ensure general vaccination coming out of the process of ‘politicisation’. “We strongly condemn and protest the involvement of ruling party workers in the mass vaccination programme.”
Dhaka city BNP bodies to help- bring positive changes in politics: Fakhrul
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday hoped that the new convening committees of their party’s Dhaka south and north units will play a pivotal role in bringing positive changes in politics.
“People across the country have high expectations from the two committees formed with tested leaders. We hope they’ll bring about qualitative changes in Bangladesh politics,” he said.
The BNP leader said, “We also hope they’ll play their role in restoring democracy removing the current undemocratic government which is destroying all our hopes and aspirations.”
Fakhrul made the remarks while talking to reporters after a meeting with the leaders of newly-formed convening committees of BNP’s Dhaka south and north units at his Uttara residence.
Read: Workers’ lives have little value to govt: Fakhrul
He asked the convening committees to quickly reorganise their organisations for the formation of full-fledged committees of the two units through councils.
On Monday, the party announced fresh convincing committees for its Dhaka south and north units by dissolving the existing ones.
Party chairperson’s adviser and freedom fighter Abdus Salam made the convener of a 49-member convening committee of Dhaka south city unit BNP while Jubo Dal leader Rafiqul Alam Mojnu its member secretary.
BNP chairperson’s another adviser and ex-Ducsu VP Amanullah Aman was made the convener of a 47-member convening committee of the party's Dhaka north city unit while ex-national footballer Aminul Islam its member secretary.
Read: Govt deceiving people over Covid vaccines: BNP
Meanwhile, leaders of the two committees started their organisational activities at their office at Bhasani Bhaban in the city’s Nayapaltan area in the afternoon.
BNP organising secretary Syed Emran Saleh Prince welcomed the Dhaka city leaders as they visited the party’s Nayapltan central office.
Workers’ lives have little value to govt: Fakhrul
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday alleged that a chaotic situation has been created by reopening RMG factories amid the ongoing lockdown as workers’ lives have no value to the government.
"RMG workers went through extreme sufferings while joining thier jobs. The government has created a messy situation by allowing the workers to go home and again bringing them back to work. Their lives seem to have no value,” he said.
Speaking at a virtual discussion, the BNP leader said the government whimsically allowed the workers to go home amid Covid transmission before Eid-ul-Azha and thus helped spread the virus across the country. “They now asked them to come back amid the lockdown. The workes returned to Dhaka from Mymensingh, Manikganj, Munshiganj and other areas on foot to join their jobs. This is too much.”
Read: Govt deceiving people over Covid vaccines: BNP
Mannan-Nilufar Memorial Foundation arranged the programme, marking the first death anniversary of late BNP vice-chairman and ex-state minister Abdul Mannan.
Fakhrul alleged that the government is least bothered about the sufferings of people and their lives and livelihoods as it is not elected by them.
"This is the high time to stand up against this misrule. We have to stand up against this monstrous regime that has been running the country without public mandate,” he said.
Read: Covid situation turned terrible: BNP
The BNP leader said a truly democratic government must be established to 'restore' people’s rights. "We all have to work together and move forward to make it happens.”
Fakhrul recalled the contributions of Mannan to the country and BNP as an honest and responsible politician.
Mannan, who served as the state minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism from 1991 to 1996, died on August 4 last year at the age of 78.