United News of Bangladesh

A kulkhani was held after Jumma prayers on Friday for the eternal peace of the soul of Salahuddin Ahmed, former MP for Dhaka-4 and BNP Trade Affairs Secretary. The programme was held at the field of Shyampur Government Primary School in the capital. Salahuddin Ahmed died at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka at 8:10pm on October 13 while undergoing treatment. His funeral prayers were held in three phases on October 14. Prime Minister and BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman attended the first funeral prayer, held at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban. BNP Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas, Road, Rail and Shipping Minister Sheikh Rabiul Alam, BNP Chairman’s Advisory Council member and Dhaka South City Corporation Administrator Abdus Salam, BNP Joint Secretary General Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel, State Minister for Railways Habibur Rashid Habib, International Affairs Secretary Dr Asaduzzaman Ripon, Narayanganj City Corporation Administrator Advocate Shakhawat Hossain, attended the kulkhani and doa mahfil. Others present included Dhaka North BNP Joint Convener SM Jahangir, Volunteer Affairs Secretary Mir Sarafat Ali Sapu, BNP Youth Affairs Secretary Abdul Kader Bhuiyan Jewel, former Joint Convener of Dhaka South BNP Nabi Ullah Nabi, Dhaka South BNP Convener Rafiqul Alam Majnu, Member Secretary Tanvir Ahmed Robin and former president of the central Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal committee Rawnakul Islam, along with leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated organisations.

The Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance on Friday alleged that preparations are underway to manipulate the upcoming October 29 by-election to Thakurgaon-1 constituency in a manner similar to what it called “election engineering” in the February 12 general election. “We are receiving information that preparations are underway to engineer the October 29 by-election like the February 12 election,” said AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, coordinator of the alliance’s Liaison Committee. Hamidur Rahman Azad, also Jamaat assistant secretary general said a strong wave of public support has emerged in favour of the alliance’s candidate Delawar Hossain in Thakurgaon-1 where voters are ready to exercise their voting rights. He made the remarks while briefing reporters after a meeting of the alliance’s Liaison Committee at the official residence of the Leader of the Opposition on Minto Road in the capital. Presided over by Hamidur Rahman Azad, the meeting was attended by the leaders of 11-party alliance. Referring to the 1994 Magura by-election held during the BNP government, Azad described it as a “black chapter” in the history of elections in Bangladesh. “The movement to oust the government started from there and reached its climax,” Azad said, urging the government to learn from the Magura election. “We do not want a repeat of Magura. We urge the government to abandon any sinister plan to hold a Magura-style election,” he said. The Jamaat leader said the 11-party alliance’s October 31 long march from Dhaka to Khulna and Kushtia would be peaceful, disciplined with spontaneous public participation. He called on the government and law enforcement agencies to ensure public safety and take preventive measures against any attempt and instigation to create disorder during their long march. “If the government and administration fail to take such measures, we will understand that they (admin) are being used as tools by the government and fascist forces to create disorder during our programme,” he said. He urged the administration to work in the public interest and extend cooperation to ensure the peaceful observance of the programme. According to the alliance, the long march will begin with an inaugural rally at the south gate of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka at 7am on October 31. Opposition Leader and Jamaat Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman will address the rally as the chief guest, alongside other senior leaders of the 11-party alliance. The procession, comprising around 1,000 vehicles, is scheduled to start at 8am and travel via the Mawa road and Padma Bridge through Shariatpur, Madaripur, Bhanga in Faridpur, Gopalganj, Fakirhat in Bagerhat and Rupsha Bridge before reaching Khulna. It will then proceed through Jashore and Jhenaidah to Kushtia. A concluding rally will be held at Kushtia Zila School ground at 8:30pm. Roadside rallies are scheduled at Nawdooba in Jajira, Shariatpur, at 9am; Katakhali intersection in Fakirhat, Bagerhat, at 11am; Babri Chattar in Khulna city at 12:30pm; Swadhinata Chattar at Phultala bus stand in Khulna at 2pm; Murali intersection in Jashore at 3:30pm; and the bus terminal in Jhenaidah at 5pm. Azad also criticised what he described as widespread politicisation of the administration, alleging that appointments and promotions were being made on political considerations rather than merit. He claimed that members of the Public Service Commission were being forced to resign after being invited to tea. He said such practices contradicted the spirit of the quota reform and July movements, which demanded merit-based recruitment and an end to discrimination. The Jamaat leader also criticised the appointment of Shamsul Alam to a post of additional secretary at the Election Commission Secretariat, describing it as an example of partisan recruitment. The alliance coordinator said the 11-party alliance was continuing its movement to implement the public mandate expressed through the referendum, ensure justice for the July mass killings, resolve electricity, fuel, gas and fertilizer crises, curb soaring prices of essential commodities, stop corruption, extortion and land grabbing, improve law and order, and end narrow partisan practices.

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives (LGRD) State Minister Mir Shahe Alam on Friday urged opposition parties to abandon long marches and protest programmes and join parliamentary discussions, saying five seats had been kept vacant for them on the constitutional amendment committee. “Leave aside long marches and protest programmes and come to parliament. Five seats have been kept vacant for the opposition on the constitutional amendment committee. You can nominate five representatives at any time and play a responsible role,” he said. The state minister made the remarks at a press briefing at the Shibganj Upazila Parishad building in Bogura around 10am. He criticised opposition leaders for not attending the inauguration of a memorial built in memory of those killed during the July-August uprising, despite being invited, saying they had offered lame excuses for their absence. “Those who want to engage in politics over July-August throughout the day showed their deceptive attitude by staying away from the inauguration ceremony,” he said. Mir Shahe Alam said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman attended the inauguration of the July Memorial, built by the government at Osmani Udyan, on October 19 as the chief guest. He said the Dhaka South City Corporation had invited the presidents and general secretaries of like-minded, allied and coalition political parties to the event. The prime minister inaugurated the memorial and reopened Osmani Udyan after 10 years in the presence of four families of those killed during the uprising, including the fathers of Mir Mughdho, Abu Sayeed and Anas, as well as the mother of another victim, the state minister said. He said the names of 834 officially recognised martyrs had been inscribed on the memorial, describing it as the only such memorial in Bangladesh. Referring to the opposition's explanation that they had skipped the event because the opposition leader's name was not included on the invitation card, Mir Shahe Alam said the argument was not valid. Had opposition leaders attended, the prime minister would have invited their representatives onto the stage, he added. Later, the state minister attended a prize-giving ceremony for talented teachers and students at the Shibganj Upazila Parishad auditorium as the chief guest.

The National Citizen Party (NCP) has reconstituted its central convening committee, naming Nasiruddin Patwary and Hasnat Abdullah as senior joint conveners. Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain and Sarjis Alam have been named senior joint member secretaries of the new committee, the party said in a press release on Friday. Abdul Hannan Masud, Advocate Abdullah Al Amin, Ariful Islam Adib, Sarwar Tushar, Nusrat Tabassum, Monira Sharmin, Dilshana Parul, Samantha Sharmin and AK Flora, among others, have been appointed joint conveners. Meanwhile, Alauddin Mohammad (International Cell), SM Saif Mustafiz (Treasurer), Md Nizambuddin, Nahida Sarwar Niva, Faridul Haque and Md Ataullah have been appointed joint member secretaries. However, the positions of party Convener Nahid Islam and Member Secretary Akhter Hossen remain unchanged.

Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad on Thursday said he believes there is no possibility of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina returning to Bangladesh in the next 10 years. “From my political experience, I think there is no possibility for Sheikh Hasina to return even in the next 10 years,” he said while talking to reporters at the Bhola Circuit House. The Speaker said the Awami League, which now faces a ban on its activities, created an environment during its tenure where honest, good and impartial people in society could not contest elections. He said fundamental reforms to the electoral system are necessary to ensure that ordinary people with public support and social acceptance, even without substantial financial resources, can participate in elections. “The Election Commission should devise a system, which will create opportunities for ordinary citizens to contest polls.” Hafiz Uddin also said the upcoming local government elections must be free, fair and impartial, noting that elections had not been fair over the past 15 years. Speaking about natural gas reserves in Bhola, he said he met officials of the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Ltd (BAPEX), who informed him that the district has an estimated 7.5 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas. The Speaker said the estimated reserve is equivalent to the country's current total gas reserves and that further surveys will be conducted in Charfasson and other areas, raising hopes of discovering additional deposits. He said local residents need access to gas and described it as their legitimate right and a long-standing demand. Hafiz Uddin added that he will contact the power, energy and mineral resources minister to discuss how to address the issue.

Leaders of the long march implementation committee on Thursday held meetings with Gopalganj district administration and police officials to seek cooperation and ensure discipline for smooth execution of the Dhaka-Khulna-Kushtia long march scheduled for October 31. The meetings discussed overall management of the programme, administrative support, maintaining law and order, and ensuring the peaceful completion of the long march. Jamaat central executive council member Mobarak Hossain, central Majlish-e-Shura member Dr Md Fakhruddin Manik and Faridpur district Jamaat Ameer Maulana Badr Uddin, among others, were present at the meeting with Gopalganj Superintendent of Police Md Habibullah and other police officials. The Jamaat leaders also met Gopalganj Additional Deputy Commissioner SM Tarek Sultan to discuss administrative cooperation and other arrangements for the programme. Jamaat central Majlish-e-Shura members Kamal Hossain and Ataur Rahman Bacchu were also present, said a press release. Earlier, the 11-party alliance staged its first long march from Dhaka to Chattogram on September 5 and its second from Dhaka to Rangpur on September 19 to mobilise public support for a number of demands. The demands include implementation of the people's verdict in the February 12 referendum, trial of the July 2024 mass killings, resolution of the energy and fertiliser crisis, control of soaring prices of essential commodities, an end to corruption, extortion and violence, improvement of law and order, and an end to narrow partisanisation.

Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, who was hospitalised on Wednesday night with breathing and heart-related problems, is now in stable condition, said BNP Standing Committee Member Prof Dr AZM Zahid Hossain on Thursday. He shared the information after visiting Moyeen Khan, also a BNP Standing Committee member, at Evercare Hospital Dhaka in the afternoon. “He was admitted to the hospital yesterday [Wednesday] after falling ill with breathing and heart-related problems. He is receiving treatment under close observation by the doctors,” Zahid said, adding that his condition is now more stable than it was on Wednesday. Zahid, also the social welfare, and women and children affairs minister, said Moyeen Khan is undergoing treatment under the supervision of Evercare Hospital physicians Dr Kazi Atiqur Rahman, Dr Ziaul Huq and Dr Zafor Iqbal. In the evening, BNP acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi also visited Moyeen Khan at the hospital. During the visit, the doctors briefed him on his latest condition. Earlier, Moyeen Khan was taken to Evercare Hospital on Wednesday night after he fell ill. The family has urged the country’s people to pray for his speedy recovery.

Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister and BNP Standing Committee Member Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan has been hospitalised after complaining of severe chest pain. He was taken to Evercare Hospital Dhaka on Wednesday night and subsequently moved to the Coronary Care Unit (CCU), according to the BNP Media Cell. On Thursday, BNP Standing Committee Member and Social Welfare Minister Prof Dr AZM Zahid Hossain visited Moyeen Khan at the hospital. During the visit, Zahid enquired after his overall condition from the doctors responsible for his treatment. He also prayed for his speedy recovery and good health.

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has accepted the resignation of State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Ishraque Hossain. The Cabinet Division issued a gazette notification to this end on Tuesday. The resignation takes effect immediately, according to the notification. Ishraque formally announced his resignation at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club on Monday afternoon. The Dhaka-6 MP came under criticism on Saturday after brandishing a firearm during an anti-drug drive in Dhaka's Gandaria. A video of the incident went viral on social media, triggering widespread reactions, including in political circles. The video showed Ishraque and his bodyguards brandishing firearms and using force against members of the public. At the press conference, Ishraque said he had voluntarily decided to step down as state minister for Liberation War Affairs. He claimed that he had taken up arms temporarily in self-defence and had not violated any law. However, he said he had decided to resign to protect his party’s image and uphold its honour. He also said he would continue his anti-drug activities as an ordinary party activist, even without holding public office. It is widely believed however that he was asked to resign by the prime minister in the aftermath of the viral incident last Saturday.  

Leader of the Opposition and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman on Tuesday alleged that the government is bus with “character assassination” of the opposition instead of easing public suffering and curbing crime. In a post on his verified Facebook page, he said people are struggling with soaring prices of essential commodities, while gas and electricity supply problems persist. Shafiqur also referred to the arrest of 84 people by the Detective Branch (DB) of police over alleged illicit activities at a house owned by an additional deputy inspector general (DIG) of police. A large quantity of suspected narcotics was also recovered from the house, he said. The opposition leader said the incident reflected the “deteriorating” law-and-order situation in the country. He alleged that extortion, mugging, looting and armed robbery have seen a rise across the country. The fact that the alleged activities took place at a property owned by a senior police official raised serious concerns among the public, Shafiqur said. Calling for a renewed role for young people, he ended his post by saying the youth must rise once again.