The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has no such objection to the BNP’s two-day marches in the capital, but they suggested changing the route of Tuesday’s programme, said party’s publicity secretary Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Anee.
“We discussed with the DMP commissioner the march programmes of our one-point movement. They have no such objection. We sought their cooperation. We hope they will cooperate with us,” he said.
The BNP leader made the remarks on Sunday after a BNP delegation’s meeting with DMP Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq at his Bailey Road office.
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Anee said the DMP authorities have suggested changing the route of Tuesday’s march programme to avoid the road in front of the Planning Ministry. “We’ll take a decision on it in consultation with our senior leaders.”
Besides, he said they also talked about BNP’s scheduled 'youth rally' in front of the party’s Nayapaltan central office on July 22.
Asked whether the DMP gave BNP verbal permission to hold the march programmes, the BNP leader said, “Actually we’ve informed them (DMP). During the table discussion orally, we sought their cooperation and they’ll cooperate with us.”
He said their party has a team of volunteers who will work responsibly at each spot to hold the programmes peacefully.
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“We’re going to hold our programmes peacefully as we want to intensify the movement by involving people,” Anee said.
Asked if there are any instructions on using the loudspeakers, he said the police authorities have requested them to conduct the campaign on social media instead of using the loudspeakers.
Replying to another question, the BNP leader said their party will come up with rallies, mass processions, mass hunger strikes and other tougher programmes to force the government to accept their one-point demand.
Earlier on July 12, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir formally announced a ‘one-point’ movement with the goal to remove Awami League from power to hold the upcoming national elections under a neutral government.
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As part of the first programme to realise the one-point demand, he also announced a two-day countrywide march programme for July 18 and 19.
On July 18, the BNP leader said the road march will be held in all metropolitan cities and districts across the country to realise one-point demand while the same programme will be observed in Dhaka stretching from Gabtali to Bahadur Shah Park in the old part of Dhaka from 10am to 4pm.
Besides, he said the party will also march on July 19 from Uttara’s Abdullahpur to Jatrabari from 10am to 4pm.
Apart from the BNP, 36 other like-minded political parties also announced the one-point movement and similar programmes to press home their demand to hold the next parliament elections under a non-party government.