Govt’s farewell bell can be heard: BNP [ Tritiyo Matra News ]

Govt’s farewell bell can be heard: BNP

Local November 30, 2019

Bangladesh Nationalist Party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday said ringing of the farewell bell of the present government can be heard all around.

‘You have seen the cricket match after ringing bell at the Eden Gardens. Their (government) bell has been ringing. Their farewell bell can be heard all around,’ said Fakhrul, apparently meaning the prime minister’s recent visit to India to watch a cricket match. He also criticised information minister Hasan Mahmud for his Thursday’s comment that BNP had weakened but it raises its hood.

Fakhrul was speaking as the chief guest in a commemoration remembering Agriculturists’ Association of Bangladesh’s former president Jabed Iqbal organised by the association at National Press Club in Dhaka.

Addressing two other discussions at the same venue on the day, BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain warned the party would launch one-point movement for ousting the government if the party chairperson Khaleda Zia was not given bail on December 5 and another standing committee member Moudud Ahmed said the people wanted action programmes and his party would announce programmes ‘on time’.

Fakhrul said it seems that the government’s people were now seeing nothing but BNP around them. ‘They now see BNP in their nightmares.’

He reminded the information minister that the people had organised language movement in 1952, education movement in 1962, mass uprising in 1969, war of independence in 1971, and anti-autocrat movement in 1990 in which the people won and now they would certainly defeat the present government that turns fascist.

Referring to comments of Awami League leaders Mohammad Nasim and Hasan Mahmud that BNP failed to give reaction on Holey Artisan case, he asked the AL leaders to refrain themselves from falsehood and said he himself gave reaction on the issue.

He said BNP was satisfied with the Holey Artisan case verdict as it was a verdict against extremism that had been destroying human civilisation.

He expected everyone would be careful so that no such incident recurs in Bangladesh.

Fakhrul, however, said such incident happened when people cannot speak or express their agonies and pains and lost their democratic rights. ‘Awami League government has created such a situation in past 10 to 12 years that people cannot speak.’

Shooting back AL general secretary Obaidul Quader’s comment that BNP itself would split, Fakhrul said many quarters including army dictator HM Ershad in his regime and AL government in past 10 to 12 years had tried to split BNP but failed as BNP is a party of the people.

He said that AL had destroyed the spirit of the war of independence. ‘The main spirit of liberation war is democracy. They (government) now have been eating up democracy. They now have their own definition of democracy.’

Presided over by the association convener Rashidul Hasan Harun, the discussion was addressed, among others, by BNP chairperson’s adviser Abdul Hai Shikder, BNP joint secretary general Moazzem Hossain Alal and Mahila Dal president Afroza Abbas.

Addressing the discussion organised by Charfassion-Manpura Jatiyatabadi Forum in Dhaka demanding release of Khaleda and withdrawal of cases against party acting chairman Tarique Rahman, Khandaker Mosharraf said if Khaleda was denied bail on December 5, the day the Appellate Division set for hearing her bail, it could be understood that she was denied bail only for direct interference of prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

If so, he warned, BNP would launch movement on one-point demand of ousting the government.

Moudud Ahmed, addressing the biennial council of Dhaka city unit of Bangladesh Labour Party as the chief guest, said the government was an unelected and unconstitutional one and their control over every sector was losing gradually.

He said people were pressuring the BNP leaders to announce action programmes. ‘We will announce programme schedules on time. I think that the proper time is yet to come.’