United News of Bangladesh

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir celebrated his 79th birthday on Monday at his Kalibari residence in Thakurgaon, cutting a cake with his wife, Rahat Ara Begum, and other family members. “Election will be held on February 12. That is why I am in Thakurgaon for campaigning. I am still on the crease,” he told UNB. He said he is spending time with the people of his constituency through electioneering. “Please pray for me so that I can continue to serve the people of my area and work for the country till the end,” the BNP Secretary General said. When asked about his age, he smiled and said, “I have stepped into 79. It has been a long journey.” Fakhrul was born on January 26, 1948, in Thakurgaon. His father, late Mirza Ruhul Amin, was a leader of the Muslim League and a minister in the Pakistan government. Like previous years, the BNP leader marked his birthday in a low-key manner and cut a cake early Monday at the request of his family members. Fakhrul said he has no personal ambitions or expectations, adding that his only goal is to ensure economic freedom for the people of the country and to create a democratic environment where people can live in peace and without fear. Referring to the 15-year movement against fascism and the student-led mass uprising in July 2024, he said Bangladesh now has an opportunity to move forward through unity. “This opportunity must be used through unity to ensure a free, fair and acceptable election so that we can build a prosperous and welfare-oriented Bangladesh. I want to believe that a prosperous and discrimination-free Bangladesh will be built in the coming days,” the BNP leader said. Since Friday morning, BNP leaders, activists and supporters from across the country have been wishing him good health and long life by calling him and posting messages on social media. Fakhrul, who was involved in leftist politics during his student life, completed his graduation and post-graduation in Economics from Dhaka University. He later joined the teaching profession through the BCS examination. Fakhrul resigned from teaching in 1986 and formally entered politics. In 1979, during the government of Ziaur Rahman, Fakhrul served as the personal secretary to then Deputy Prime Minister SA Bari. In 1988, he won the Thakurgaon Municipality election and became its chairman. In 1992, Fakhrul became president of Thakurgaon District BNP and gradually rose through the party ranks, from a member of the executive committee to becoming the party’s secretary general. Before reaching the top leadership of BNP, he served for a long time as first vice-president and later president of the Jatiyatabadi Krishak Dal. Fakhrul was appointed acting secretary general of BNP following the death of the party’s then secretary general Khandaker Delwar Hossain in 2011. He was given full charge of the post five years later, in 2016. He was elected MP from Thakurgaon-1 on a BNP ticket in 2001 and appointed a state minister. Fakhrul was also elected MP from Bogura-6 in the 11th parliamentary election but did not take the oath, as BNP rejected the election results. During the Awami League’s more than one-and-a-half decades in power, Fakhrul was imprisoned several times in different political cases.