United News of Bangladesh

Supporters of BNP leader Ishraque Hossain continued their sit-in for the fourth consecutive day on Sunday demanding his swearing-in as the mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC). Demonstrators from different parts of the city gathered in front of the Nagar Bhaban in the morning and staged sin-in. They locked several entry gates and took position at the entrances, disrupting administrative activities at the DSCC offices. The chanted various slogans including “We demand oath for brother Ishraque”, why delay in oath-taking”, and “People’s mayor Ishraque bhai,  there is  no other mayor.” Shafiur Rahman, a BNP activist from Old Dhaka, alleged that deliberate delays are being made in handing over mayoral responsibilities to Ishraque, blaming LGRD adviser Asif Mahbud Sajib Bhuiyan for the situation. BNP’s Salahuddin accuses interim govt of siding with NCP "We will continue our protest until our demand is met," he said. Jehad Hossain, who came from Sutrapur, said, “Ishraque was elected in public vote. We want to see him assume office without further delay.” Protesters warned of larger demonstrations if the oath-taking ceremony is not held soon. On Saturday, Ishraque's supporters marched toward the Secretariat and declared the adviser "unwelcome". Currently, the Local Government Ministry is operating from the DSCC building due to fire damage at the Secretariat last December. Earlier, Ishraque submitted a letter to the Local Government Division  requesting necessary steps for his swearing-in  followed by a press briefing in the evening. Meanwhile, DSCC Chief Executive Officer Zillur Rahman told the media that administrative work has been hampered due to the ongoing protests. Security Adviser Khalilur trashes BNP's foreign citizenship claim The latest city corporation election was held on February 1, 2020, where Awami League's Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh defeated Ishraque by a margin of nearly 200,000 votes. On March 27 this year, the Dhaka election tribunal annulled that result and declared Ishraque as mayor. The Election Commission published a gazette confirming Ishraque’s mayorship on April 27, but the oath-taking has yet to take place.      

Police on Sunday foiled an attempt of some demonstrators to lay siege to Nagar Bhaban, the Dhaka South City Corporation’s headquarters, protesting its decision to cut down trees in Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road in the capital. Around 200 people took part in a possession under the banner of Saat Masjid Gaach Rakkha Andolan (Movement to protect trees on Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road) in the morning, said our correspondent from the spot. The progamme was announced from a press conference on Saturday by Saat Masjid Gaach Rakkha Andolan to protest felling of trees by DSCC in Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road in the name of development. As part of the programme, the protesters gathered at Shahbag’s Doyel Chattar on Sunday morning. Various cultural and environmental organizations including Poribesh Bachao Andolon (Poba, Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers’ Association (BELA) and people from different walks of life joined the possession. The protesters left Doyel Chattar in Shahbagh at 11:30am to lay a siege to Nagar Bhaban to press home their 4-point demand. However, when they reached Bangabazar intersection in Dhaka’s Gulistan area, police obstructed them from moving forward, Alamgir Kabir, the general secretary of Poribesh Bachao Andolan (PoBa) told UNB.

Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) has reportedly taken an initiative to relocate stray dogs from the capital city to other parts of the country.