Awami League
No one is starving in Bangladesh, people don’t want panta rice any more: AL MP Chumki
Ruling Awami League MP Meher Afroz Chumki today (April 09, 2023) said no one in Bangladesh is now starving.
“People of the country do not want panta rice any more, they don’t go door to door and beg,” she said.
The MP said this during a discussion on the 50th anniversary of the National Parliament.
Chumki said that poverty has disappeared from Bangladesh.
Read More: Poverty forces Thakurgaon day-labourer to put 7-month-old baby girl up for sale
“We don't deny that prices have been going up. People are suffering all over the world. They are spending money after a lot of consideration. But is there any person in Bangladesh without food? We can proudly say that the people of Bangladesh are not going without food. People do not want panta rice any more, today they want good food and clothes. The country is self-sufficient today,” she said.
Saying that Sheikh Hasina is one of the top global leaders in women's empowerment, Chumki added that the prime minister has appeared for question and answer in parliament for bringing accountability.
Expressing determination to move forward while facing conspiracy, Chumki said this is not 1975, this is 2023. “Country is on track to become Smart Bangladesh in 2041. No one can get away with conspiracy here. We will move forward.”
“Why do we need to seek votes? Because, after killing Bangabandhu, a generation grew up in Bangladesh with wrong and distorted history. They do not know the history of Bangabandhu, they do not know the history of this country,” she said.
Read More: Bangladesh Poverty Watch Report 2022 launched; regular monitoring of progress emphasized
She mentioned that some intellectuals have forgotten that on the eve of victory, intellectuals were killed by the Pakistani army and their collaborators so that this country fails to move forward.
The ruling party MP said that with “false information and exploiting a child by paying him just Tk 10, a section of people have mocked the independence of the country.”
Pro-liberation Islamist parties should fight conspiracies: Hasan Mahmud
Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud called on Islamist parties that support the liberation war to fight against anti-national conspiracies.
He made this call during his speech as the chief guest at a Discussion Meeting and Iftar Party organized by Bangladesh Islami Oikya Jote on Tuesday evening.
The event was presided over by Chairman Misbahur Rahman Chowdhury of Islami Oikya jote.
Hasan, also the Joint General Secretary of Awami League said, "Various conspiracies are going on in the country, and the time has come to unite with the Islamic parties that were with us in the 2008 elections. By doing so, it will be easier to deal with conspiracies and elect the government through voting with the participation of all parties in the next election.”
Regarding the upcoming elections, Hasan Mahmud mentioned that the Bangladesh Awami League proposed using the EVM system in the elections, as in developed countries such as India and the USA.
However, several other parties, including BNP, objected to EVMs, he said adding “It appears that the Election Commission has decided to hold elections through ballots in all constituencies, which is more like accepting the opposition's demands.”
“So, I don't see any obstacle to participating in the next election, but actually, BNP is afraid of the election, so they want to stay away from it,” he said.
Referring to the government's special initiative during Ramadan, the Information Minister said, “Consumer rights organizations have been active in dealing with price hikes, and for the convenience of people, the government has taken measures to provide daily commodities at low prices during Ramadan."
Ex-student leader Nur-E-Alam Siddiqui passes away
Nur-E-Alam Siddiqui, who served as convener of Swadhin Bangla Kendriya Chhatra Sangram Parishad during the mass upsurge of 1969 and the War of Liberation in 1971 has passed away. He was 82.
He was a Member of Parliament and former president of Bangladesh Chhatra League (1970-1972).
He died at 4:37 am Wednesday, confirmed his press secretary Aniket Rajesh.
Siddiqui was one of the organizers of independence, also known as one of the four prominent student leaders who the mass movement of 1969. He was one of the leaders of Mujib Bahini.
Siddiqui played an active role in all the political activities of the time, including participation in the six-point movement, the 11-point movement, the language movement. He was elected MP from Jashore-2 constituency as a candidate of Bangladesh Awami League in the first parliamentary election of 1973.
He contested from Jhenaidah-2 constituency as a candidate of Bangladesh Awami League in the 7th parliamentary elections of 1996 and 8th Jatiya Sangsad in 2001.
Ctg 8 by-polls: AL nominates Noman Al Mahmud
Awami League has nominated Noman Al Mahmud as its candidate for the by-election to Chattogram-8 constituency.
AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader revealed the matter at a press briefing today.
Noman is the Chattogram organizing secretary of AL.
Also read: By-election to Chattogram-8 constituency on April 27
The seat was left vacant following the death of Awami League MP Moslem Uddin Ahmed.
By-election to the Chattogram-8 constituency will be held on April 27, 2023.
BNP won't go to election under AL, Fakhrul reiterates
The main opposition BNP would not go to election under an Awami League government and no election will be allowed under the incumbent, said BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Monday.
“It is impossible to hold a fair election under a party involved in vote rigging in even the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) election and BNP will not participate in the next election led by the ruling party Awami League and it is final. Rather BNP with people of the country will resist the planned farcical election,” he said.
Fakhrul came up with the remark while speaking at the biennial conference of Nilphamari district unit BNP at Syedpur municipality community hall on Monday.
BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman virtually joined the conference.
“Awami League is involved in confusing the nation by creating a political crisis in a planned way and it also established ‘reign of terror’ after snatching the rights of people. The Awami League pushed the country into bankruptcy by smuggling several thousand crores of money abroad. As a result, people are bearing the brunt of the soaring price of commodities,” said Fakhrul.
Also read: AL destroys electoral system by “so-called” SCBA polls, says BNP demanding fresh vote
“People will not go for any election under Awami League and they will not be allowed to grab the power through the people of the administration they set in the administration. The rights to vote will be returned to the nation through the restoration of freedom and democracy under the leadership of Khaleda Zia and Tarique Zia,” he said.
The BNP leader also urged the leaders and activists of the party and people of the country to be prepared for this.
The biennial conference of Nilphamari district unit BNP was held on Monday after seven years. A 151-member committee will be formed after the conference.
Some 303 members of Syedpur Upazila, municipality and Kishoreganj upazila committee will exercise their franchise for election of president, general secretary and organizing secretary.
Prof. Abdul Gafur Sarkar and assistant prof Shwakat Hayat Shah are vying for the post of district unit BNP President.
END/UNB/Corr/MAS/ssk
Banganbandhu’s birth anniversary: 20 injured in Awami League’s infighting in Patuakhali
At least 20 people of the ruling Awami League (AL) were injured in a clash between two groups of ruling Awami League during celebration of the 103rd birth anniversary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and National Children’s Day here on Friday.
The injured were admitted to local hospitals. But their identities could not be known immediately.
Of them, Bauphal upazila unit AL General Secretary and Upazila Parishad Chairman Abdul Motaleb Hawlader was hospitalised at Sher-E-Bangla Medical College Hospital with serious injury, hospital doctors said.
On the occasion of the Bangabandhu’s birthday, local,AL lawmaker ASM Feroz, Motaleb and district unit AL Joint General Secretary and Bauphal municipal Mayor Ziaul Hoque Jewel announced separate programmes.
Also Read: Bangladesh remembers Bangabandhu on his 103rd birth anniversary
Of them, Feroz and Motaleb called the programme at the same place and time.
A tense situation had been prevailing in the area over the matter for the last few days.
Auribindu, an upazila unit Juba League leader, told UNB that Motaleb and his followers brought out a celebratory procession around 11:00am.
Police obstructed the procession in front of upazila parishad gate when it was marching towards the party office, he said.
Also Read: AL destroys electoral system by “so-called” SCBA polls, says BNP demanding fresh vote
Suddenly, several hundred supporters of Faisal Ahmed Monir, nephew of the lawmaker and upazila unit AL President Feroz, attacked Motaleb and his men with sharp weapons when an altercation broke out between police and him, Auribindu said.
Law enforcers fired at least 7-8 rounds of rubber bullets to bring the situation under control, causing a panic among locals.
As of filing this report around 3:00pm, a tense situation has been prevailing in the area.
Al Mamun, officer-in-charge of Bauphal police station, said an additional number of police personnel have been deployed to ward off any unexpected incident further.
He said they were forced to fire the rubber bullets to disperse the infighting groups.
Md Al Amin, Bauphal upazila nirbahi officer, said both groups promised to hold their events in a peaceful manner but no one kept their words despite his request.
AL destroys electoral system by “so-called” SCBA polls, says BNP demanding fresh vote
The BNP on Friday alleged that Awami League has put the last nail in the coffin of the electoral system of the country by holding a lopsided election of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) using police and outsiders.
The party also demanded a fresh election to Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) cancelling the results of the “so-called” violece-marred polls for the sake of the sanctity of the apex court of the country.
“Awami League has turn into such a bankrupt party politically that it has to use police and outsiders to announce its candidates as winners in the Supreme Court Bar Association elections. It’s a matter of great shame,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
Under the circumstances, Fakhrul said their party wants the Chief Justice to come forward and take necessary measures to protect the sanctity of the Supreme Court, the highest institution of the judiciary.
Also Read: BNP delegation attends dinner hosted by Indian envoy
A day after the announcement of SCBA polls results, he made the demand at a press conference at BNP’s Nayapaltan Central office.
Even though there was no election legally, Fakhrul alleged that the candidates of the ruling party were declared elected “illegally” and “unilaterally” by arranging a drama in the name of polls. “I demand holding a fresh election to the Supreme Court Bar Association, immediately annulling the so-called polls
Also Read: BNP works out 10-day Independence Day programme
Bangabandhu Awami Ainjibi Parishad, the panel of pro-Awami League lawyers, won all the 14 posts of the executive committee of the SCBA polls held on Wednesday and Thursday.
Voting took place on Wednesday and Thursday amid the ruckus, violence, clashes, police action, and the allegations of ballot theft and tearing.
Fakhrul said their party thinks the SCBA polls have exposed once again that Awami League is a master at vote rigging.
“The lawyers of the Supreme Court are called officers of the court. Awami League has destroyed the elections of those lawyers' association by using the police force in a medieval style,” he observed.
The BNP leader alleged that Awami League wants to establish a one-party Baksal rule in the country by completely regulating the Judiciary. “They want to establish their control on all bar associations by force. We’re uttering these words with anger and sadness today."
He said it is the sacred duty of those who are in charge of different state institutions to protect the country and the sanctity of the institutions they are leading.
“We can’t imagine that police can enter the Supreme Court and attack the lawyers, beat them, and injure them. This is not a trivial matter and we can’t take it lightly. These incidents are exposing the nature of the country and proving that it has become a failed state,” Fakhrul said
He called upon all concerned to come forward to protect the country and its institutions. "We have been saying repeatedly that Bangladesh is no longer a democratic state as the Awami League government is destroying all the democratic institutions in the country in a planned way.”
Replying to a question, the BNP leader said Awami League will definitely rig votes if the next national election is held under it.
“No credible election is possible under the Awami League government," he said adding "It has become their character that they will take everything by force. If they stay in power, they will take control over the election and declare their candidates as winners.”
Fakhrul calls AL a 'pathological thief’
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday accused the Awami League of rigging votes in Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) elections and branded the ruling party as a 'pathological thief'.
He said, “Their (AL’s) only aim is to indulge in theft. We usually call them vote thieves. They rig votes in the national elections and even in Union Parishad polls. “Now they rigged votes in the Supreme Court and Dhaka Bars. In fact, they are pathological thieves,” he said.
Speaking at a discussion programme, the BNP leader also said Awami League does nothing, but steal. “They make their living by stealing and it is their profession and addiction…They also depleted the country’s resources through theft.”
He also alleged that the ruling party destroyed the country's power sector by indulging in widespread stealing.
Regarding the SCBA polls, Fakhrul said there was a ruckus in the Supreme Court after false and stamped ballot papers were found there on Tuesday night, the night before the election. “They (pro-AL lawyers) assaulted our seven-time elected Supreme Court Bar Secretary (Mahbubuddin Khokon) and wounded him. “
He also said a case was filed against 1,000 pro-BNP lawyers, including Khokon, over the incident.
“What country do we live in now? Where have we brought this country to? Awami League has to answer the people for this. They have taken this country to extreme destruction. They have destroyed all our culture, traditions and democratic values. They have destroyed all our democratic institutions…” the BNP leader bemoaned.
The two-day voting in SCBA elections started around 10 am on Wednesday, but it was suspended immediately when some pro-BNP lawyers staged demonstrations demanding the formation of an election conducting committee led by a neutral person.
Read more: AL, not BNP, mastermind of ‘arson terrorism’: Fakhrul
The discussion programme was arranged at the Jatiya Press Club marking the launching of the book titled “Amar Rajnitir Rojnamcha” written by BNP Standing Committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain.
Fakhrul said Awami League does not believe in justice, fairness and democracy. “That is why they established a one-party Baksal rule in 1975 by destroying democracy and shutting down all newspapers and dissenting opinions.
He feared that there is no guarantee that Khandaker Mosharraf’s book, Amar Rajnitir Rojnamcha, would not be banned by the current Awami League regime.
The BNP leader said various media outlets, including Bangladesh Times, Bichitra, Channel1, Islamic TV and Diganta TV were shut down during the rules of Awami League. “But this party again claims they have given democracy an institutional shape.”
He said the country’s people have now turned their backs on the present government as they are now unable to buy rice, lentils, salt, eggs and other daily essentials due to unusual hikes in their prices.
Fakhrul also said 42 percent of people in Bangladesh are now living below the poverty line while 80 percent of people cannot eat protein like beef, chicken, mutton and fish. “But in that country, they have frequently increased the prices of electricity and gas.”
He said that the government is now going to take advance income tax as the coffers have got exhausted. “They (AL leaders) are stealing from the banks and the reserves…the people of the country have woken up to defeat this regime through a movement.”
Musharraf said he wrote the book to share his long experiences, thoughts and actions as a university teacher and a politician.
"Politicians of our country can hardly manage time to write books as they remain so busy with politics…I got some time while in jail and used it for writing the book. I did it (wrote the book) for the present and future generations. I strongly believe it’ll be useful to them.”
10 journalists, lawyers hurt as police charge batons on SC premises
At least 10 journalists and lawyers were injured as police charged batons on them on the Supreme Court premises amid scuffle between pro-Awami League and pro BNP lawyers over the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) election on Wednesday.
The two-day voting in SCBA election started around 10 am but it was suspended immediately when some pro-BNP lawyers staged demonstrations demanding formation of election conducting committee led by a neutral person.
When the situation turned chaotic, police charged batons on the lawyers and journalists, leaving 10 people injured, said Barrister Kaisar Kamal, BNP law affairs secretary.
Barrister Kaisar Kamal said, “Police charged baton on some lawyers including Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon and Ruhul Kuddus Kajal. We have informed it to the Chief Justice.”
Jabed Akter, reporter of ATN News, Ibrahim Hossain, cameraperson of Boishakhi TV, Abdullah Al Maruf, multimedia reporters of Manabjamin, Humayun Kabir, cameraperson of ATN Bangla, Solaiman Swapan, cameraman Somoy TV, Mehedi Hasan, cameraman DBC, Fazlul Haque, reporter of Jago News and SM Nur Mohammad, reporter of Ajker Patrika were among the injured.
Of them, Jabed Akter was taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.
A seven-member sub-committee led by senior lawyer Mansurul Haque Chowdhury, was formed earlier for conducting the election. But he resigned from the post on personal ground on March 13.
Read more: Supreme Court Bar Association election underway
Later, pro-Awami League Ainjibi Parishad formed a sub-committee led by freedom fighter Maniruzzaman while the pro-BNP Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Oikya Panel formed another committee headed by ASM Moktar Kabir.
Besides, miscreants tore down 3000 ballot papers sometime on Tuesday night. A tense situation has been prevailing in the Supreme Court area over the issue.
Govt ‘looted’ country’s election system: Nazrul
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Tuesday alleged that the Awami League government has ‘looted’ the electoral system of the country.
"We have got the right to elect our government through the great Liberation War. May Allah give us back that right and achievement as those have been looted by the current government,” he said.
Nazrul made the remarks while speaking at a milad mahfil arranged by BNP at its Nayapaltan central office on the occasion of the holy Shab-e-Barat, the night of fortune that is being observed tonight (Tuesday night) across the country.
He bemoaned that the country's resources are being looted almost openly and a huge amount of money is being siphoned off abroad from Bangladesh.
“We’ll pray tonight to Allah to free us from misrule, bad governance, repressions, and suppressions,” he said.
Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, urged the country’s people to pray for their party’s leaders and activists who have been subjected to enforced disappearance, killing, and repressive acts.
He said the country’s people are going through serious ordeals due to misrule, corruption, and repression of the government.
The BNP leader expressed hope that the country’s people will get rid of the shackles of current despotic rule under the leadership of their party.
Nazrul claimed that the party's chairperson Khaleda Zia has been "unjustly imprisoned" by the government and prayed to Allah for her unconditional release so that she can again serve the country and its people.
BNP vice chairman Dr AZM Zahid Hossain, chairperson’s adviser Amanullah Aman, joint secretary general Khairul Kabir Khokon, and assistant office secretaries Taiful Islam Tipu and Abdussattar Patwari, among others, joined the mild mahfil.