Amidst the ongoing movements carried out by the opposition BNP, aiming to topple the Awami League government, several of its top leaders are not in Bangladesh.
At least five of the party’s leaders, including Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir are currently abroad quoting illness. Apart from them, BNP’s Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has also been out of the country for a long time.
Medical treatment raises queries
Several BNP leaders said that the party’s top leaders are out of the country to seek medical treatment.
However, they said while some of the leaders are abroad for political reasons, no progress in the situation has been detected.
On Saturday morning, BNP Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas, along with his family members left for Singapore for medical treatment.
Earlier on Thursday, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir along with his wife Rahat Ara Begum and daughter Mirza Safaruh also went to Singapore.
While, on June 27, BNP Standing Committee Member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain also went to Singapore for treatment.
Meanwhile, BNP Standing Committee Member Iqbal Hasan Mahmood Tuku is already in Thailand. He is also abroad for medical reasons, said a party leader.
On the other hand, another Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed has been staying in Delhi for a long time for medical treatment. He was acquitted by a Dhaka court in March this year and went to Delhi a few days later. He lives there with his wife.
As the party’s three important leaders -- Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Mirza Abbas, and Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain are together in Singapore at the same time, several have queried whether this occurrence holds any political motives.
A member of the party said leaders had gone abroad to undergo treatments in advance as the political situation and program-centric engagements in Bangladesh would increase from September.
BNP’s next moves amid absent leaders
Currently, six of the 14 BNP standing committee members are now out of the country.
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia is staying at her Gulshan residence while Muhammad Jamiruddin Sircar and Rafiqul Islam Miah are currently ill.
Jamiruddin lost his wife in May last year, and since then, he has become irregular in standing committee meetings. Rafiqul Islam Miah has been bedridden for several years.
Therefore, Standing Committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, and Selima Rahman are active in the party's programs.
Asked if BNP’s program will be affected as senior leaders are out of the country, BNP Standing Committee Member Selima Rahman said: "The movement is going on. As part of the joint movement, programs are going on in all the metropolitan cities of the country Saturday.”
“Our leaders are out of the country for many reasons. It will have no impact on the movement. Our organizational leadership is moving forward,” she added.
Rahman further said BNP is set to announce new programs very soon.
In this regard, several party insiders said the BNP is currently thinking about calling hartal or strikes again in the country.
Several sources in the party's foreign wing said although the leaders of the ruling party of India held meetings and discussions with the Awami League and Jatiya Party, the BNP’s chances are very slim.
For some time in Delhi, there has been a rush to get closer to the policymakers of the Indian government, but the leaders have not been able to make much of an impact.