BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed on Tuesday said communal harmony and fraternity are deeply rooted in the soil of Bangladesh and no conspiracy can break the longstanding bond among people of different faiths and ethnic communities.
“Our communal harmony is rooted deep in the soil of this country. Various forces and conspirators make different attempts to destroy and break this unbreakable bond, this strong bond of fraternity and our unity,” he said.
“But this bond will survive for generations,” Rizvi said.
He was speaking after placing wreaths and paying homage at the graves of former President Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia at Zia Udyan in the capital in the morning, along with members of the Hindu, Buddhist and Christian Welfare Trusts.
Rizvi said people of all faiths and ethnic communities work together to preserve harmony in the country.
“Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and people from different religious communities and ethnic groups work together and stand shoulder to shoulder to preserve our harmony,” he said.
Rizvi said the country’s communal harmony and fraternity have developed over centuries through interaction and coexistence among different communities.
“Our harmony is rooted deep in the soil of this country. Through our interaction and exchange with one another, our communal harmony and fraternity have established us as a nation,” he said.
He said Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman gave this national identity a philosophical form through the concept of “Bangladeshi nationalism”.
“Within this framework, within this branch and this vessel, every religious community and every ethnic group can have a place. Everyone has a place here. Everyone can proudly say that we are Bangladeshis,” Rizvi said.
Rizvi said BNP has leaders from different religious communities, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists.
“All the distinguished leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, BNP, are here. Those who lead BNP come from different communities — there are members of the Hindu community, Christian community and Buddhist community,” he said.
“But none of them represents only a religious community. They lead the entire nation through BNP,” Rizvi said.
He said their religious identity was only one aspect of who they are and should not be considered the defining issue.
“They may have a religious identity, but that is not the main issue,” he said.
Rizvi said the three trust boards formed for the Hindu, Buddhist and Christian communities should work to address the needs and responsibilities of their respective communities.
“With this objective, trust boards have been formed for the three communities. I hope these trusts will carry out their respective responsibilities, look after the issues concerning their communities and work to fulfil them,” he said.
He expressed hope that the trust boards would make sincere efforts to fulfil their responsibilities.
At the event, Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Minister Sa Ching Prue, BNP Volunteer Affairs Secretary Sharafat Ali Sapu, Hindu Religious Welfare Trust Senior Vice-Chairperson Nipun Roy Chowdhury, Prime Minister’s Adviser and Hindu Religious Welfare Trust member Bijon Kanti Sarkar, reserved women’s seat MP and Hindu Religious Welfare Trust Senior Vice-Chairperson Subarna Sikdar, Christian Religious Welfare Trust Senior Vice-Chairperson and reserved women’s seat MP Anna Minj, and reserved women’s seat MP and Christian Religious Welfare Trust Senior Vice-Chairperson Madhabi Marma, among others, were present.