BNP has decided to wage its anti-government movement only in the capital Dhaka demanding the resignation of the government.

To get success in the movement, it will gather leaders and activists in Dhaka from across the country. As part of the plan, BNP has given programmes including rallies and road-marches in Dhaka and adjacent districts. The main target of these programmes is to motivate the partymen alongside speed up the movement.  

Besides, proposals came for non-cooperation programmes including hartal, blockade and mass sit-ins. BNP standing committee has given party acting chairperson Tarique Rahman the charge of finalizing of these programmes. Tarique will give the final roadmap of the movement in time.

Party sources said the BNP wants to end the ongoing one-point movement before the announcement of the schedule of the next parliamentary election. It has taken the Dhaka-centric main programmes considering bad experiences of the past. For this target, the party is keeping contact with the other parties of their alliance and like-minded parties for a successful simultaneous movement.

Contacted, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told Bangladesh Pratidin that they will resolve the caretaker government issue on the street if the government does not accept their demand.

“The people of the country have awoken. The street is the only way to oust the autocratic government. If the government doesn’t accept the demand, then the country’s people will resolve the issue on the street,” he said.

Meanwhile, youth road marches, jointly organised by Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal, Swechasebak Dal and Chhatra Dal, from Rangpur to Dinajpur and Bogura to Rajshahi were held on Saturday and Sunday. Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir led these two road marches. On the other hand, preparations are underway to hold rallies in Keraniganj, Narayanganj and Tongi and three big rallies in Dhaka.

In Dhaka, separate rallies will be organised by professionals, women and labourers. Besides, road march programmes were announced in Sylhet, Barishal and Chattogram regions. BNP is scheduled to hold a road march from Kishoreganj’s Bhairab to Sylhet today (Thursday).    

BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and vice chairman AZM Zahid Hossain will lead the road march. The party will take all necessary initiatives to force the government to accept their demand by taking the streets in BNP’s court in the next month. 

The party will hold all programmes with caution as it had a bad experience of clash with police in their sit-in programme at all entry points of Dhaka on July 29 this year. BNP has been waging movement for the last two months to topple the government. It has observed a total of 26 big and small programmes demanding one point. Currently, the party is observing programmes of 12 days at a stretch.    

BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy said his party is making all sorts of preparations to oust the government. The most important thing is the country’s people have been involved in this movement. They won’t see this autocratic ruler anymore. 

Another standing committee member Abdul Moeen Khan said the movement is being continued demanding a non-partisan caretaker government. BNP is working to succeed this movement by gathering all leaders and activists of the party from across the country. 

@ The article was published on print and online versions of The Bangladesh Pratidin on September 21, 2023 and has been rewritten in English by Golam Rosul.