United News of Bangladesh

BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Sunday said people are not viewing the opposition’s long march and other street programmes positively as the government has been in office for only six months. “You are holding long march and various programmes before even six months have passed. Instead of constructively criticising what the government is doing according to its pledges, you, as the opposition, have started showing your presence on the streets. The people are not taking this positively; they are not viewing it favourably,” he said. Rizvi made the remarks while talking to reporters at BNP’s central office at Nayapaltan. Asked about the Jamaat-e-Islami ameer’s claim during Saturday’s long march that the government has failed to run the country in its first six months, Rizvi said the government has five years to govern. “He is saying the government has failed to run the country. You should ask people from different professions and walks of life in this country, in what way and in which area has it failed?” he said. Rizvi urged the opposition to follow democratic practices by raising issues both inside and outside Parliament. “You speak quite well in Parliament at times, I see. But as soon as you come outside, it is completely different. The language you use is neither parliamentary, nor civilised or decent,” he said.  “You can speak inside Parliament, and you can also organise programmes outside Parliament. You can hold discussions, meetings and rallies and point out the government’s mistakes and shortcomings. That will make the government more cautious,” he said. He said if the opposition had any alternative proposal regarding gas and fuel, it could have discussed it in Parliament, explaining how the government should address the issue and what its alternative proposal was. “They have not said anything, backed by data, statistics or other information, about through which route and how fuel can be brought in. They have not spoken like a responsible opposition does in developed democracies,” Rizvi said. “Instead of pointing out mistakes and shortcomings, you have adopted a different approach, which I believe is an attempt to destroy the democratic framework, the young plant of democracy that is beginning to grow,” Rizvi said. Rizvi said the opposition’s long march and other programmes are aimed at overshadowing positive changes in various sectors of the government and upward trends in development and production indicators. “They have taken these programmes to cover up these positive aspects and the positive changes taking place in various sectors of the government. I would say they are adopting a very anti-people character through these statements and activities, while encouraging wrongdoing, illegality and obscenity,” he said. Rizvi also asked BNP leaders and activists across the country to remove all billboards and signboards installed as part of the party’s 48th founding anniversary programmes.  

Water Resources Minister Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee on Saturday warned opposition parties against threatening the BNP with a one-point movement, asserting that today's BNP is a political party born from 17 years of street struggles. Addressing a pre-rally gathering marking the BNP’s 48th founding anniversary, Annie criticized the opposition’s relentless protests over the past six months. He equated the NCP with Jamaat-e-Islami, stating their long march speeches mirror fascist rhetoric. "Everyone desires a beautiful Bangladesh. We successfully held elections, yet they launched protests heading toward a one-point movement," Annie said. He added that resolving utility crises within six months is impossible, noting that public suffering over gas and electricity shortages could have been resolved faster if the interim government had taken charge of the work. He claimed the public rejected the long march due to low participation. The rally paraded from Adarsha Samad Mor to Lillah Jame Masjid field, attended by District BNP Joint Convener Advocate Hasibur Rahman and Member Secretary Sahab Uddin Sabu.

BNP Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas on Saturday warned that conspiracies are being hatched both within and outside the party, urging Prime Minister and BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman to remain cautious and ensure that no one could damage the party’s image. Speaking at a discussion marking the BNP’s 48th founding anniversary at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh auditorium, Abbas told Tarique that “many things are happening” that may not always reach his ears. “There are conspiracies against this party. They are coming from within the party as well as from outside. We have to keep an eye on this,” he said. Abbas, a political adviser to the Prime Minister, urged party leaders and activists to inform the BNP Chairman of anything they learn that could affect the party. “Some leaders and activists speak very nicely in front of you, but they do not speak nicely outside. You should be a little cautious about these matters,” he said, addressing Tarique. The BNP leader also cautioned that some individuals are tarnishing the BNP’s image through their words and actions. “Your good works are being destroyed by the bad words and bad deeds of some bad people. Please keep an eye on this,” he said. Abbas, who returned home on September 2 after receiving treatment abroad for around five and a half months, attended the programme in a wheelchair despite not having fully recovered. He urged party leaders and activists to protect the BNP’s reputation. “Whatever you do or do not do, please keep the party alive. This party will keep the country alive,” he said. Abbas said the BNP had survived 48 years despite persecution, imprisonment and attacks against its leaders. “This party has not come to die or break apart. The party cannot be defamed because of one or two people,” he said. Paying tribute to BNP founder Ziaur Rahman and former BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, Abbas said the BNP represented the spirit of independence, democracy and people’s rights. “BNP is not merely the name of a political party. BNP means the spirit of independence, BNP means democracy, BNP means people’s rights,” he said. The BNP leader called on party leaders and activists to remain united and strengthen Tarique’s hands to build a Bangladesh centred on the people. “Many storms have come, but we did not break. We faced persecution, but we did not bow our heads,” Abbas said. ‘Many conspiracies against Tarique’ Abbas directly warned Tarique that he could face further conspiracies. “Many conspiracies are being hatched against this party, and many more will be. Many conspiracies will be hatched against you, our leader. Please remain cautious,” he said. The BNP leader said he will share details of such matters with Tarique if asked privately. He also referred to the deaths of Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda Zia while stressing the need for caution. Abbas, visibly emotional, said he has deep affection for the BNP and has no intention of leaving the party. “I love this party very much.” He recalled that he entered politics under Ziaur Rahman and received Khaleda Zia’s affection and support. “I came into politics through the hands of Shaheed Ziaur Rahman, received the affection of Deshnetri Khaleda Zia, and I want to end my political life by doing politics with you,” Abbas told Tarique. He said he might not always be able to remain as active as before because of his age and physical condition, but there was no reason for him to move away from Tarique or the BNP. “I will end my politics in BNP, InshaAllah.” The discussion was chaired by BNP acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and moderated by BNP Publicity Secretary and State Minister for Fisheries and Livestock Sultan Salauddin Tuku. BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, Economist Mahbub Ullah, BNP Standing Committee members Amanullah Aman, Farhad Halim and Ismail Zabihullah, among others, spoke at the programme. BNP Standing Committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Salahuddin Ahmed, Selima Rahman and AZM Zahid Hossain were also present.

BNP Chairman’s Advisory Council member and Prime Minister’s Political Adviser Zahir Uddin Swapon on Saturday accused the 11-party alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami of plotting to create instability in the country through street programmes such as a long march. Speaking at a roundtable discussion in the capital, he urged the country’s people to remain vigilant about attempts to take parliamentary debates to the streets unnecessarily. Swapon joins as PM’s political adviser “Political parties may not fully understand what they are doing. But various domestic and foreign forces remain ready to exploit any unstable situation,” the adviser said. Swapon said programmes like a long march are contrary to the aspirations of ordinary people at a time when Parliament is functioning satisfactorily. “I believe such a programme in the name of movement, when the National Parliament is functioning satisfactorily, goes against the aspirations of the people,” he said. The roundtable, titled “Review of the First 180 Days of Bangladesh’s Democratic Government: The Context of Governance, Accountability and Development,” was organised by Citizen Forum Bangladesh and Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Initiatives (BCAI) at the Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA) auditorium. Reviewing the government’s first 180 days, Swapon said it has succeeded in setting a new direction for the country after pulling it out of the severe deadlock caused by two decades of authoritarian practices, a fragile social structure and a bankrupt economy. “The crisis is so deep that no magical change is possible overnight. However, the government has already taken specific policy measures to ensure sustainable growth in the long run,” he said. On the energy crisis, the Prime Minister’s Political Adviser blamed what he described as long-term import dependence and flawed policies in the power and energy sectors. “Due to long-term import dependence and wrong policies, the country is now struggling in essential sectors like power and energy. Failing to take sustainable measures to extract natural resources despite remaining in power for so long was not merely corruption; it was a long-term betrayal of the nation,” he said. Swapon said the government is not trying to avoid responsibility by merely talking about the crisis. “Rather, the Prime Minister has sincerely apologised to  people and is implementing initiatives to explore alternative sources and extract our own gas,” he said. The adviser said the government is also focusing on creating new sources of imports alongside China and India, reducing import costs and diversifying export products to restore good governance and provide economic relief. Referring to the role of an effective Parliament, Swapon said the tendency to quickly take parliamentary debates to the streets undermined democratic political culture. “Although parliamentary politics provides an opportunity to hold the government accountable through checks and balances, the tendency to quickly take parliamentary debates to the streets hinders democratic culture,” he said. Swapon said it is the responsibility of the opposition to hold the government accountable while making parliamentary democracy more dynamic and meaningful. UGC Chairman Professor Dr Mamun Ahmed chaired the discussion moderated by Dr. Shakhawat Hossain Sayantha. Former Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Chowdhury, Jahangirnagar University Vice-Chancellor Professor Kamrul Ahsan, human rights activist Shirin Huq, and politicians, academics and researchers, among others, spoke at the event.

LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan on Friday said the '1/11' episode was a deep-rooted conspiracy designed specifically to target Bangladesh and the BNP. Addressing a discussion organised by the Narsingdi district unit of BNP as the chief guest, Moyeen Khan said the conspiracy was hatched because the BNP believes in nationalist policies and acts out of a deep sense of love for the country.  The discussion meeting was held at the Weaving Board Institute's auditorium in the Saheprotab area of Narsingdi town to mark the BNP's 48th founding anniversary. In Bangladesh's political discourse, the military's intervention just eleven days prior to a general election on January 11, 2007 is referred to as '1/11'. "Bangladesh and the BNP are synonymous," Khan said. "There was a blueprint during the One-Eleven period to remove the BNP and turn Bangladesh into a subservient state under others. As a consequence, today's Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was forced to live in exile for 17 years. However, justice has finally been served today." The minister remarked that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is working tirelessly day and night to rebuild the nation from the ruins of the last 17 years of destruction. Emphasizing that the BNP does not believe in the politics of vengeance, Khan asserted that the party only seeks justice. "Our Prime Minister has returned to Bangladesh after 17 years of exile and was elected prime minister through the direct votes of the people in a free, fair and neutral election," he said. He added that the government is fully committed to delivering fair and neutral local government elections, spanning from city corporations down to union parishads. Presided over by BNP Joint Secretary General and Narsingdi-1 (Sadar) MP Khairul Kabir Khokon, the program was moderated by Narsingdi-3 (Shibpur) MP and District BNP General Secretary Monzur Elahi. The event was also attended by BNP Self-Reliance Affairs Secretary and Reserved Seat MP Adv. Shirin Sultana, Raipura MP Engineer Ashraf Uddin Bokul, Narsingdi District Council Administrator Tofazzal Hossain Master, among other local leaders.

BNP leader Mirza Abbas on Friday visited his family graveyard in Shahjahanpur after offering Jummah prayers at a local mosque and offered Fateha at his parents’ graves. His personal assistant Mizanur Rahman Sohel said Abbas went to the family graveyard after offering the Juma prayers at a mosque in Shahjahanpur. Mirza Abbas pays tribute to Zia, Khaleda at their graves “He visited the graves of his parents and offered Fateha and a munajat, seeking the forgiveness of their souls and their eternal peace,” Sohel said. Mirza Abbas returned home from Malaysia last Wednesday after undergoing treatment there for five and a half months. On Thursday night, he visited the graves of late President Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar and paid his respects.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed on Friday said the government has succeeded in ensuring freedom of religion for people of all faiths during its first six months in office, and called on his fellow citizens to look beyond cliched concepts such as 'communal harmony', and unite under one single identity as Bangladeshis.   “We have ensured religious practices and freedom for all religions over the past six months since coming to office. This is visible,” he said. Home Minister wants to move beyond 'communal harmony' as govt ensures freedom of religion He said everyone should live in Bangladesh as equal citizens regardless of their religious identity. The Home Minister made the remarks as the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony of the historic central Janmashtami procession organised by Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, at the premises of Shri Shri Dhakeshwari National Temple in the capital. He said those who previously believed that the votes of the country’s Sanatan faith followers constituted a vote bank for a particular political party, indicating the Awami League without naming them, had now been proven wrong. “You have shattered that misconception, that myth. Because we all say: religion belongs to individuals, the state belongs to everyone, and everyone has the right to security,” Salahuddin said. He said the Prime Minister held a national state ceremony on Thursday marking Janmashtami, the birthday of Lord Krishna. “We believe you have judged the matter. In the last election, you voted against the evil forces. You will continue to play a role in strengthening democracy and maintaining secularism in the future as well,” he said. “The Constitution of Bangladesh entrusts the state with the responsibility of ensuring the religious practices and religious freedom of people of all faiths. It says the state will ensure this. It also says there can be no discrimination on the basis of religion,” he said. He said the Constitution also guarantees the freedom of followers of all religions to establish places of worship and the freedom of those responsible for such places. “We do not want to simply keep these provisions in the books or in the Constitution. In reality, we will ensure this harmony and this freedom, and we have made that declaration. So far, we have provided that assurance. The verdict is yours; you are the judges,” the Home Minister said. He said everyone should live in Bangladesh as equal citizens regardless of their religious identity. “We want to live here as citizens. We may have religious identities, but religious identity is not the main issue here. We want to live here with our identity as citizens,” he said. “All citizens of Bangladesh, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and people belonging to ethnic communities, whoever they may be, will freely maintain and observe their respective religious practices, religious ceremonies and religious freedom. But as a nationality, we will all remain citizens of Bangladesh, and there will be harmony among us. This will be our one identity,” he said. Referring to BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's ethos, Salahuddin said, “Our leader Tarique Rahman has said, ‘Bangladesh First.’  “If Bangladesh comes first, then we are Bangladeshis first. After that come our religious, social and ethnic identities. Bangladeshis first, Bangladesh for everyone, Bangladesh first, this is our policy,” he said. “Many expect different kinds of statements from me, but I expect one thing, I hope none of you will identify yourselves as minorities as free citizens of Bangladesh,” he said. “We hope you will all identify yourselves not on the basis of religion but on the basis of citizenship. Everyone will say that they are citizens of Bangladesh enjoying equal rights,” he said, asking the participants whether such an expectation could be made. The Home Minister also suggested replacing the term “communal harmony” with “religious and social harmony”. “We use the term ‘communal harmony’ grammatically because the term has come down in literature with the idea that communal harmony must be maintained. It would be better if we said, ‘We will maintain social and religious harmony’, that would be more appropriate,” he said. “There is no need to mention the term ‘communal harmony’ anymore. We will maintain religious harmony, coexistence, and social peace and harmony,” he said. The colourful rally was inaugurated by the Dhaka South City Corporation Administrator Md Abdus Salam. The programme was chaired by Shri Gopal Chandra Debnath, president of the Mahanagar Sarbajanin Puja Udjapan Committee.

BNP acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Friday said holding long marches and other political programmes is a democratic right but urged opposition parties to refrain from deliberately creating instability in the country in the name of political programmes. “There will be programmes in a democracy, and there will be programmes of the opposition. You will speak in Parliament and outside Parliament as well; there is no objection to that,” he said. “But give an alternative on how the gas and electricity crisis can be resolved. Creating planned instability or deliberately bringing the country to a standstill, however, is not right,” Rizvi said. He made the remarks while addressing the ceremony to take charge by the newly elected executive committee of Bangladesh Dance Artistes Association at the auditorium of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy at noon. Referring to the opposition, the BNP leader said, “You can hold a long march, but try to establish what is true. You can hold a long march for gas and electricity, that is fine. But the point is, give an alternative, tell us how and from where you will supply gas and electricity. Give us a suggestion.” “You are in Parliament. You can raise the issue there. You can give a plan about what you will do. But we have not heard this from anyone in the opposition. We are only hearing about programmes,” he said. “We cannot continue to be part of the rotten political culture of the past,” Rizvi said, referring to the opposition’s announcement of various programmes, including long marches. He said the era of enforced disappearances, secret killings and extrajudicial killings is no more. Mentioning that political programmes and opposition activities are an integral part of democracy, the BNP acting secretary general warned, “But if you repeat the past, it will lead us back towards the culture of the past. The darkness will begin to deepen.” Calling on the opposition to engage in reasonable criticism, he said, “Before launching any programme, there must be a counter-plan. You have to tell the government and give suggestions.” Rizvi said the government is facing a gas and electricity crisis and it was not created by any fault of the government itself. He said the current crisis has been caused by the global war, including the conflict between the United States and Iran. “The responsibility for the global war, the US-Iran war, does not lie with the Bangladesh government. Most of the fuel-carrying ships come through the Strait of Hormuz, but ships are currently not coming because of the risks there,” the BNP leader said. “As a result, we are unable to bring in the fuel we need, creating a shortage. It has become difficult to operate our power plants and factories, and it has also become difficult to light stoves in households across the country,” Rizvi said.  

Prime Minister’s Political Adviser and BNP Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas on Thursday paid homage to Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia at the graves in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. He went to Zia Mausoleum inside Zia Udyan after attending the parliamentary session in the afternoon. Mirza Abbas, who was in a wheelchair, got down from his car and went to the graves. Accompanied by party leaders, activists and supporters, he placed wreaths at the graves to pay his respects to Zia and Khaleda. He then stood in silence for a while, recited Fateha and offered prayers seeking eternal peace for the departed leaders. Mirza Abbas returned home on Wednesday night after undergoing treatment in Singapore and Malaysia for five and a half months. Mirza Abbas returned to the Jatiya Sangsad and delivered a speech after a long absence due to health complications.  

BNP on Thursday formed a coordination committee to oversee the enlistment of graduates and review the election activities of Jatiyatabadi Oikya Parishad for the election of 25 registered graduate representatives to the Dhaka University Senate. The Senate, comprising more than 100 representatives of various groups including teachers, undergraduates, and registered graduate students, is the supreme governing and advisory body of Dhaka University, responsible for reviewing policies, passing the annual budget, and nominating candidates for the Vice-Chancellor position. Water Resources Minister and BNP Joint Secretary General Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee has been made convener of the committee, while Dhaka University Syndicate Member Prof Dr Md Morshed Hasan Khan its member secretary. The information was disclosed in a press release signed by BNP Assistant Office Secretary Muhammad Munir Hossain. The other members of the committee are BNP International Affairs Secretary Barrister Nasir Uddin Ahmed Asim, DU Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education) Prof Dr Abdus Salam, DU Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Administration) Prof Dr Mohammad Almujaddade Alfasane, National University Pro-Vice-Chancellor Prof Md Lutfur Rahman, Dean of DU Faculty of Arts Prof Dr Abul Kalam Sarker, and Md Abdus Sattar Patowary. The committee was formed to review the activities of Jatiyatabadi Oikya Parishad regarding the enlistment of graduates and the election for 25 registered graduate representatives to the Dhaka University Senate, according to the press release.