Zia’s brother to float new party [ Tritiyo Matra News ]

Zia’s brother to float new party

Local March 06, 2016

Bangladesh Nationalist Party founder late president Ziaur Rahman’s younger brother Ahmed Kamal on Saturday said that he would float a new nationalist party to implement ideals and principles of Zia from which, according to him, the party had deviated.
He made the announcement replying to queries from reporters after a discussion at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh in the city.
‘You’ll be informed whether BNP will be with us,’ he said.
Presiding over the discussion, Kamal, only living brother of Zia, termed the present situation of BNP vulnerable.
Shahid Zia and Jatiyatabadi Adarsha Bastabayan Parishad organised the discussion on ‘Resurrection of Shahid Zia’s ideals and imperilled democracy.’
He said that now many BNP leaders and activities had deviated from the ideals and principles of Zia.
Kamal, in his written speech, said that it was not at all wise now to create any debate over the number of martyrs of war of independence of Bangladesh.
He said, ‘Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and proclaimer of independence Shahid Zia have to be kept above any controversy.’
He said all parties should come out from dirty politics and mud-slinging.
Kamal said that the BNP leadership became victim of conspiracy of a vested quarter and anti-liberation group and ill-attempts were being made to guide the BNP chairperson through wrong way.
He said that those people wanted to keep the chairperson in dark by giving wrong suggestion and information.
Zia’s brother said that dedicated senior leaders and grassroots leaders and activists who believed in Zia’s ideals were now paying price due to mistakes of that group. Leaders and activists went into hiding being accused in hundreds of cases and could not sleep at houses in fear of arrest, killing, and enforced disappearance, he said.
‘We have to come forward to rejuvenate them giving correct directives,’ he said.
He criticised the Awami League government saying that the ruling AL was paying lip service to democracy but there was no democracy in the country.
Kamal said that the democracy loving people did not want autocracy and did not believe in envious or destructive politics.
Kamal told the audience that he would remain with them as a friend last day of his life ‘in these bad day of BNP’ to reorganise and guide the party founded by his brother through implementing ideals of Zia.
Some speakers at the function assured to extend their support to Ahmed Kamal for taking initiative to implement Zia’s ideals.
Former parliament whip Ashraf Hossain, also former BNP joint secretary general, said that although special power was given to Ziaur Rahman, he used to make decisions in the party’s national executive committee meeting.
Ashraf, known as a reformist who was expelled from BNP after January 11, 2007 political changeover, said that the ownerships of BNP and Awami League now belonged to two families.
National Congress president Sheikh Shahiduzzaman, former Dinkal editor Kazi Siraj, former Dhaka University teacher Mahbub Hasan, Bengal National Congress president Abul Hossain Abu, former assistant attorney general Hosneara Ahsan and S Islam Don, among others, addressed the discussion.