United News of Bangladesh

BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed on Sunday visited the party’s central office at Naya Paltan for the first time to carry out official activities since being appointed to the party's top organisational post. Rizvi arrived at the central office around 11am and carried out his official work there. Later, leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliated organisations, as well as leaders of the 12-Party Alliance, met with Rizvi. Many of them greeted him with flowers on the occasion of his appointment as Acting Secretary General. Earlier in the morning, Rizvi, along with newly appointed Prime Minister’s Political Adviser Zahir Uddin Swapon, paid homage at the graves of BNP founder and former President Shaheed Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia at Zia Udyan in the capital’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area around 10am. BNP Joint Secretary General Abdus Salam Azad, Volunteer Affairs Secretary Mir Sarafat Ali Sapu, 12-Party Alliance spokesperson Dr Maulana Mufti Mohiuddin Ikram, Kalyan Party Chairman Lion Mohammad Shamsuddin Parvez and United Liberal Party Chairman Mohammad Aminul Islam, among others, were present on the occasion.

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Monday (November 17) alleged that the fascist Awami League is using ‘money looted from various banks and mega projects’ to buy cocktails and carry out acts of sabotage. “Those who committed crimes during the fascist era are now the ones shamelessly setting buses on fire. Cocktails are being bought with money looted from different banks. Funds misappropriated from projects like the Padma Bridge and Metro Rail are being used to finance acts of sabotage,” he said. The BNP leader made the remarks while speaking at a press briefing at the party’s Nayapaltan central office. During the fascist rule, he said the Awami League controlled the media and carried out vicious propaganda against BNP leaders and activists who were fighting for democracy, falsely linking them to arson attacks. “Even then, we repeatedly said that pro-democracy people had no connection with these arson incidents, and BNP leaders and activists had no involvement. We also presented clear evidence at the time that pro-democracy activists and the BNP had absolutely no link to arson violence,” he said. The BNP leader said the true perpetrators of arson violence are now visible to everyone. Read more: Tarique hails Australian MPs’ call for democracy, election integrity in Bangladesh He said their party wants a peaceful Bangladesh where people of all opinions can speak freely, and where elections take place smoothly, fairly, and in an inclusive environment. Rizvi said the crimes committed during Sheikh Hasina’s tenure must face due punishment. “If Sheikh Hasina is properly punished for her crimes, it will stand as a powerful example. The previous fascist government controlled the media to spread propaganda. People believe there will be no more dictated courts like in Sheikh Hasina’s era. The country’s people want fair justice, and they are now witnessing it and will continue to witness it,” he said. He recalled the brutal mass killings during the July–August uprising carried out by the Hasina regime using law enforcement agencies. “We still remember how Abu Sayed, Mugdho, and Waseem Akram were brutally murdered, and how many children were mercilessly killed. Those horrific memories remain with us.” The BNP leader alleged that Sheikh Hasina has been making unfair statements from India to create chaos in Bangladesh. “Why is India allowing this? By sheltering a criminal and giving her the scope to incite violence and carry out subversive activities against Bangladesh, India is violating the law. The people of Bangladesh do not view this positively. Such behaviour is unacceptable.” Replying to a question, Rizvi said, as in the previous year, instructions have been given not to hold any programmes, including cutting any cake, on Tuesday (20 November) to mark BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman’s birthday. Read more: Fakhrul calls for resistance against ‘vested quarter’ ahead of Hasina verdict