Oikya Front to hold citizens’ dialogue 6 Feb

Jatiya Oikya Front will hold a citizens’ dialogue in the capital on 6 February next demanding fresh polls after cancelling the results of the 11th parliamentary election, reports UNB.

“We’d earlier announced to hold the citizens’ dialogue. We’d booked a hall for 28 January accordingly. This date has been rescheduled. Our leader Kamal Hossain will go abroad for health check-up. We’ll hold the dialogue on 6 February after his return,” said coalition leader ASM Abdur Rab.

He was talking to reporters after a meeting of the Oikya Front Steering Committee at Kamal’s Motijheel chamber.

Rab, also president of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), said they together with people from all classes and professions will continue their movement to make sure that people get back their voting, democratic, human and citizen rights. “We don’t want to announce any programme hurriedly being desperate. We’ll announce programmes gradually after thinking well.”

About the absence of any BNP representative, including its secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, in the meeting, he said, “I talked to Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir. He couldn’t turn up as he is ill. …Abdul Moyeen Khan and Gayeshwar Chandra Roy were supposed to attend the meeting. But they got stuck elsewhere. We’ll be together in the next meeting.”

Asked whether there is any rift with BNP, Rab dismissed it, saying they are now in the same position where they started from.

Replying to a query about joining dialogue with prime minister Sheikh Hasina, Gano Forum leader Mostafa Mohsin Montu posed a counter-question, “Which is the prime minister? We are not recognising the election.”

Asked whether there is any difference in the coalition over the Jamaat issue, Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna said Jamaat is not an issue. “Vote robbery on 29 December in the 30 December election is now a big issue to us. Jamaat was never with us and isn’t now.”

Over the issue, Rab pointed at Manna and Montu and said all of them are freedom fighters and they can in no way go against the Liberation War.

Manna said Kamal will go abroad on Saturday for medical checkup.

Gano Forum executive eresident Subrata Chowdhury and Gonoshasthya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury were, among others, were present at the meeting with Oikya Front convener Kamal Hossain in the chair.