The eighth death anniversary of Arafat Rahman Koko, the younger son of BNP founder Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, was observed on Tuesday.

BNP and its associate bodies observed the day with various programmes.

On January 24, 2015, Koko died of cardiac arrest at the age of 45 at a rented house in Malaysia. His body was brought back home on January 27 and buried at Banani Graveyard.

In observance of the day, a Qurankhani was arranged on the premises of Koko’s grave in Banani at 8am.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul along with some BNP leaders placed wreaths at his grave and offered fateha there around 10am. Relatives and different political and sports organisations also placed wreaths at his grave.

Also read: Koko was the main hero in developing Bangladeshi cricket: Fakhrul

BNP arranged a doa mahfil at its Nayapaltan central office at 12pm seeking eternal peace for Koko’s departed soul. Party standing committee member Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, vice chairman Ahmed Azam Khan, chairperson’s advisory council member Abdus Salam, Amanullah Aman, publicity affairs secretary Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anne and acting office secretary Syed Imran Saleh Prince, among others, attended the programme.

Dhaka south and north city units of BNP distributed cooked food among the destitute and orphans on the occasion.

Another doa mahfil will be held at the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office in the afternoon. BNP standing committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Barrister Jamiruddin Sircar, Mirza Abbas, Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, and Selima Rahman, vice chairman Abdullah Al Noman, Barkatullah Bulu, Mir Mohammad Nasiruddin and Dr AZM Zahid Hossain, among others, participated in the programme.

Different associate and professional bodies of BNP and its city and district units also observed the day by holding various programmes, including discussions and prayer sessions, across the country.