Opposition Chief Khaleda Zia has warned that an “all-party movement committee” will be formed to resist any government attempt to hold elections unilaterally.
She issued the warning at a mass rally at the Sylhet Aliya Madrassa ground on Saturday.
Braving rain, tens of thousands of leaders and activists of the party from the various districts in the Sylhet Division, thronged the venue. A huge number of leaders and activists of Shibir, student front of BNP’s key ally Jamaat-e-Islami, occupied the front row of the crowd.
Reminding people that the tenure of the Awami League-led grand alliance government would expire on October 24, Khaleda said: “Either we will meet in the elections or on the streets.”
The former premier asked the civil and police administration to not harass anyone or illegally use firearms: “If you oppress people, the consequences will not be good.”
Referring back to 2007 when the Awami League refused to accept the then immediate past Chief Justice KM Hasan as the head of the caretaker government, Khaleda said: “The Awami League did not go to polls under KM Hasan, who was not a BNP man. How will it be justified for BNP to go to polls under Sheikh Hasina, who is the president of the Awami Leauge?
“Had you accepted KM Hasan in 2007, we would have accepted your proposal to contest polls under you [Sheikh Hasina].” Khaleda assured: “We do not pursue politics of vengeance. We will give you [Hasina] the due honour and protect your dignity.”
At one point of her speech, the opposition chief said the people of Sylhet were her relatives.
Khaleda Zia’s elder son Tarique Rahman’s in-laws are from Sylhet.
She reminded people that her party had done massive developments in Sylhet in the past and would continue to do so in the days to come if her party was voted to power.
She promised to upgrade the Dhaka-Sylhet highway into four lane, establish separate engineering and women’s universities, build an export processing zone, and introduce fast train service in Sylhet.
Rampal Power Plant
Turning to the proposed coal-based power plant in Rampal, Khaleda said the site where the government had been trying to set-up the plant was not the right place.
It would adversely affect the world’s largest mangrove forest Sundarbans and destroy its bio-diversity.
“We want power. We also need power, but we do not need a power plant in Rampal. We would rather have it somewhere else more suitable.
“You inaugurated the plant on Sunday [Saturday]. I want to say that is the end of it. We will not allow anyone to set-up the power plant in Rampal. Not only the Sundarbans, but the entire ecology of the country will also be affected [if the power plant is set up],” she said, urging the young generation to raise their voices against and to wage movement to halt the process.
Ilias Ali
The BNP chief alleged that the government abducted M Ilias Ali, organizing secretary of the party, because he had raised voice against the Tipaimukh Dam.
“Ilias Ali loved Sylhet. He waged a movement against the Tipaimukh dam because Sylhet will be devastated if the dam is constructed.”
Former lawmaker Ilias Ali went missing along with his driver in the capital on April 17 last year.
Torture on shibir leader
Slamming the government for what she said was its autocratic attitude, the BNP chief alleged that the “inhumanly” tortured Shibir leader Delwar Hossain.
“The government crippled Delwar by torturing. He was a good young boy. What kind of a system of governance it this? Did people vote for them for that?”