Opposition BNP on Saturday alleged that the ruling Awami League is conspiring to reestablish one-party rule in the country by obliterating democracy.
“In 1974, the Awami League led-government had snatched people’s all democratic rights after having failed to run the state…They’re again trying to reestablish one-party rule Baksal following the same style annihilating democracy,” said BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
He brought the allegation at a discussion arranged by BNP at the auditorium of Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh on the life and works of Ziaur Rahman, marking his 32nd death anniversary.
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia attended the meeting as the chief guest and listened to the addresses of the speakers sitting with the audience. Dhaka City unit BNP convener Sadeque Hossain Khoka presided over the meeting.
On May 30, 1981, Ziaur Rahman was assassinated by a group of disgruntled army officers at Chittagong Circuit House.
Fakhrul accused the government of snatching people’s all democratic rights and urged the countrymen to make a strong resistance against this regime.
“People must awake to protect democracy and wage an irresistible movement against the repressive acts and misdeeds of the government and force it to arrange the next election under a non-party caretaker government,” the BNP leader said.
Describing Ziaur Rahman as a successful statesman, Fakhrul focused on his colorful career as an army officer and a politician, and his outstanding contributions to the country’s independence, democracy and nation building.
Addressing the programme, BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said Awami League fears dead Zia more than alive Zia as he was the most successful leader and statesman of the country.
Accusing the government of conspiring against the Zia family, he urged the party men to uphold the ideals of party founder Ziaur Rahman to foil and resist any kind of conspiracy.
Another party policymaker Moudud Ahmed said BNP senior vice chairmanTarique Rahman did not go to the UK for treatment giving any undertaking or accepting any condition as he had been there with the High Court permission.
“I’ve gone through the bail order of Tarique and didn’t find any condition or undertaking mentioned there. He didn’t secure bail giving any undertaking nor accepting any condition,” the noted lawyer told the discussion.
Moudud said Tarique will return home at the appropriate time, and no power will be able to resist his homecoming.
Khoka urged the ruling party leaders to stop ‘false propaganda campaign’ against Zia and his eldest son Tarique. Or lease, he warned that its consequence will not be good.
He came down hard on the Home Minister and State Minister for Law calling them ill-mannered, Khoka urged Tarique not to return home as long as such persons are in power. “Why do you return to in the country now where there’s no rule of law and democracy. We’ll receive you in time with due respect.”
Moderated by BNP publicity affairs secretary and opposition chief whip Zainul Abedin Farroque, the discussion was addressed, among others, by senior BNP leaders and pro-BNP intellectuals. They recalled the outstanding contributions of Ziaur Rahman to the country’s Liberation War and its development.
Source: UNBConnect
