BNP will observe the 81st birthday of its chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia on Friday in a simple manner, with special prayers across the country.

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi announced the programme at a press conference at the party chairperson’s Gulshan office.

He said doa and milad mahfils will be held at BNP offices across the country, including the party’s central office in Dhaka, and in mosques after Juma prayers, seeking Khaleda’s speedy recovery, good health, and long life, as eternal peace for the departed souls of those martyred during the 1971 Liberation War, the 1990 democratic movement and the 2024 mass uprising.

Rizvi urged the leaders and activists of BNP and its associate bodies to take part in the programme spontaneously.

He said the birthday observance will be simple, without any cake-cutting or other events. “We will only pray for our leader’s good health and recovery,” he added.

The BNP leader said a milad mahfil will be held at 11am at the party’s Nayapaltan central office.

Rizvi said Khaleda, who has endured years of political persecution, remains a symbol of hope for democracy-loving people in Bangladesh.

“Through her uncompromising political leadership, she has inspired the nation in the movement to restore democracy,” he said.

As in the last nine years, the party has no plan to cut a cake to celebrate the day in the early hours of her birthday. Since 2016, the BNP has been marking the day with doa mahfils instead of cake-cutting.

Born on August 15, 1945 in Dinajpur, Khaleda served three terms as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She was elected as the country’s first female Prime Minister in 1991.