Before the formal start of the scheduled youth rally of three associate bodies of BNP, the stage set up for the programme collapsed at Suhrawardy Udyan on Saturday.

The incident occurred when Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal president Sultan Salahuddin Tuku was speaking to formally open the rally around 1:50 pm.

Though the rally was scheduled to begin at 2 pm, the organisers could not start as of 3 pm. The party leaders were seen repeatedly urging the followers to sit down on the ground and maintain discipline.  

BNP supporters converge on Suhrawardy Udyan for ‘youth rally’

Artistes from the BNP's cultural body continued to perform patriotic songs on the broken stage to keep the crowds invigorated under the scorching sun. They were performing songs and small dramas since morning. 

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir stepped on the collapsed stage around 2:45 pm. He will address the programme as the chief guest and give the youth various directions to intensify the ongoing one-point movement.

The leaders and activists of BNP and its associate bodies in their thousands converged on the rally venue to press home their one-point demand, including holding the next election under a neutral government.

BNP's Milon hands agriculture minister leaflet of one-point demand

Youth leaders and activists from various parts of Dhaka wearing different coloured caps and carrying banners, festoons, placards and portraits of the party’s top leaders have started gathering at the venue in processions since morning.

Apart from the main rally venue, the BNP loyalists took a position on the nearby roads, disrupting traffic in the adjoining areas. 

3 BNP bodies set to hold ‘youth rally’ at Suhrawardy Udyan Saturday

 A large number of members of law enforcement agencies have been deployed around the rally venue to fend off any untoward incident.

BNP associate bodies--Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal, Chhatra Dal, and Swechchasebak Dal--have arranged the rally with their main objective to involve the young generation in the street movement for establishing their rights.