Nazrul Islam Khan
People have no interest in voting in a ‘meaningless’ election: BNP
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Tuesday said the country’s people have no interest in casting their votes in a ‘meaningless’ election billed for January 7.
He also raised a question if there is public support in the 'one-sided' election, why the councillors have been given instructions by the police to bring voters to the polling stations.
Talking to reporters while distributing leaflets, containing BNPs' call for boycotting the upcoming polls, among the pedestrians on the Motijheel to Dilkusha Road, Nazrul said, “People are not interested in voting as they know it's a meaningless election... It's not a vote and not an election."
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He called upon the voters not to go to the polling stations in any situation on January 7. “Don’t cooperate with the regime which is playing a game with the lives and livelihoods of people.”
Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, said why the dummy candidates are needed to bring people to the polling station. "Why are beneficiaries of the government’s different programmes and facilities threatened that their cards will be cancelled if they don't cast their votes? Why have you used police to instruct the councillors to bring people to the polling stations?
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He said people have already rejected the lopsided election and they will boycott the voting as well.
The BNP leader also questioned the justification of holding such an unacceptable election by spending several thousand crores of taka when the country’s economy and financial institutions are in dire straits.
“We urge the government to stop this expenditure on this illegal election...it can’t be called an election where all candidates belong to Awami League. We don't want such an election,” he said.
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The BNP leader said their party wants such an election where the people can freely exercise their right to vote and elect their representatives.
As part of their three-day countrywide programme, Nazrul along with some leaders and workers of Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal conducted a mass campaign and distributed leaflets among the pedestrians near Sonali Bank in the Motijheel area.
Get ready for movement with shrouds on heads: BNP to followers
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Wednesday asked their party’s leaders and activists to get ready for taking to the streets with shrouds on their heads for the restoration of democracy in the country.
“Many of our political colleagues have remained missing. We’ve not yet found a good number of our leaders, including Ilias Ali, Chowdhury Alam, Parvez and Hiru. More may face the same fate at this point of our movement,” he said.
Speaking at a discussion, Nazrul said the leaders and activists of BNP must continue the movement together as their chairperson Khaleda Zia is now at the crossroads of death and life.
“We have to create a mass upsurge in a democratic process to oust the current regime. So, take preparations for that. We must carry out the fight with shrouds on our heads braving the fear of deaths,” he said.
BNP’s national committee on celebrating the Golden Jubilee of Independence of the country arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club.
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Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, said democracy was obliterated and disrupted repeatedly in the country since the country’s independence by Awami League whenever it came to power.
He said BNP has the capability to bring back democracy in Bangladesh as it did in the past under the leadership of Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda Zia.
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“It’s now the responsibility of BNP leaders and activists to restore democracy in the country,” Nazrul said.
AL making people forget real history, alleges BNP
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Saturday alleged that Awami League has been providing wrong information to the country’s people about the Liberation War as part of its move to hide facts.
“Awami League has been trying to make us forget the real history of the Liberation War. I call it an evil attempt. The country needs to get rid of such a crime. Everyone has to be given or recognized what he or she deserves,” he said.
Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, came up with the comments while distributing prizes among the winners of a drawing and quiz competition at the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office.
BNP’s committee on the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of the country’s independence arranged the programme, marking the Victory Day.
Nazrul described Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the architect of the country’s independence and paid homage to him.
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He also paid tributes to BNP founder Ziaur Rahman, those who ran the first government of independent Bangladesh, commander-in-chief of the Liberation War MAG Osmani, all other freedom fighters and martyrs recalling their role in liberating the country.
The BNP said the nation had started preparations for the Liberation War through different movements and struggles since the Language Movement in 1952. “All those who led the nation over this long period and initiated the war deserve our respect.”
“Had the political leadership not prepared proper grounds, we couldn’t have won the war. All those who supported us from all over the world also deserve our respect. At the same time, we must express our gratitude to those who in our country directly or indirectly helped us. It won’t be acceptable to people if we try to take all credits on our own without recognising the contributions of others. This is unfair,” he observed.
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Nazrul said it was Major Ziaur Rahman who first revolted against the Pakistani occupation forces at midnight on March 25. “We heard the proclamation of independence on the radio for the first time in his (Zia’s) voice. How’ll I accept it if someone now tells me referring to a law or a court verdict not to believe what I heard in my own ears?”
He urged the new generation to try to know the truth. “Remember, knowing lies is not knowledge.”
People won’t tolerate if Khaleda dies “without treatment”: BNP
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Saturday warned that there will be a mass upsurge in the country if anything bad happens to Khaleda Zia for lack of treatment as people will not remain silent.
"People won’t play the role of a silent spectator, if you (govt) kill the most popular leader of the country, Begum Khaleda Zia, without treatment,” he told a human-chain programme.
The BNP leader said people will not accept the conspiracy of the government against Khaleda Zia as they did not accept the Agartala “conspiracy” case in the past. “There’ll be a mass uprising, and the movement will be carried out in a democratic process.”
He urged people to get ready to intensify BNP’s current movement in a peaceful manner.
Read: Khaleda needs to go abroad for immediate liver treatment: Fakhrul
Jatiya Party (Qazi Zafar), one of the allies of the 20-party alliance, arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club, demanding BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia’s treatment abroad.
Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, said physicians at the largest hospital in Bangladesh are saying Khaleda has some complications that cannot be treated here while prominent lawyers are saying there is no legal bar to sending her abroad for advanced treatment under the current situation.
“But the government, which has been in power without people’s votes, won’t allow our leader to go outside the country for advanced treatment. Where the law is not a barrier and humanity is needed, what’s the justification of obstructing her (from going abroad)?” he questioned.
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The BNP leader alleged that the government is not willing to let Khaleda go abroad for advanced treatment out of political vengeance. “They (govt) are now using the state machinery and the state power to take their political revenge.”
Khaleda, a 76-year-old former prime minister, has been receiving treatment at Evercare Hospital in the capital for various health complications, including that of liver, cardiac and kidneys, since November 13.
Poor, jobless people largely ignored in budget: BNP
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Sunday alleged that the government largely ignored the poor and unemployed people amid the pandemic by not giving necessary allocation and announcing incentive packages for them in the proposed budget for the next fiscal year.
“The government has reduced the corporate tax in the proposed budget from which only 20 leading profitable companies will get the benefit of Tk 146 crore. Other companies will also enjoy the same benefit,” he said.
Speaking at a discussion, the BNP leader said, “But there’s no allocation and incentive package for lakhs of people who became unemployed and poor due to the coronavirus. Many industries and business institutions in the informal sector have been shut down. But there’s nothing for them in the budget.”
He said many hawkers, and workers of transport, launch, rickshaw-pullers, day-lobourers and hotel workers have become jobless while 2.5 crore people turned poor newly. “But the government has not given any incentive for them.”
Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club, marking BNP founder Ziaur Rahman’s 40th death anniversary.
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Nazrul, a BNP standing committee members, demanded the government announce a monthly allowance for the working people who have become unemployed due to the Covid outbreak.
“It’s high time to introduce allowances for the unemployed people. We must protect them and provide them food at a fair price or under a rationing system. There’re now lakhs of both educated and uneducated jobless people in the country. We’ve to let them live with dignity,” he added.
The BNP leader recalled the contributions of Ziaur Rahman to the country’s Liberation War and its development and urged the party leaders and activists to take a lesson from his life.
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He also called upon them to get united to restore democracy and people’s lost rights through a movement.
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