Demanding Ishraque Hossain be sworn in as mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) in line with a tribunal verdict, the BNP leader's supporters staged a protest in front of the chief adviser’s residence, Jamuna, even while getting drenched in the rain on Thursday.
Around 10:30am, a large number of party leaders and activists did not leave the protest site despite heavy rainfall.
They chanted slogans demanding the declaration of Ishraque as mayor and the resignation of Local Government Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan.
However, after the rain began, many took shelter in nearby areas.
Safayet Ullah, an activist of the Swechchhasebak Dal who continued protesting while drenched in rain, said: “According to the court verdict and the EC's gazette, Ishraque Hossain has the rightful claim to the mayoral post. That is why we are here with our legitimate demands.”
Emphasizing that the mayoral position is not the main issue, he urged the government to accept their demand and said they would not return home without achieving it, regardless of the rain or any further hardship.
Meanwhile, some are viewing the protest negatively.
A passerby, Ziaul Hasan, said: “Coming to Jamuna for any and every issue is not justifiable because this is a highly important area. All parties should be mindful of that.”
Since Wednesday evening, Ishraque’s supporters had been occupying the area. Many remained there throughout the night.
On Thursday morning, they were once again present in front of Jamuna for the second consecutive day.
Vehicular movement towards Jamuna from adjacent areas such as Kakrail, Matsya Bhaban, Circuit House, and Hare Road has already been halted.
Members of the law enforcement agencies are on alert.
Earlier, on Wednesday evening, BNP leader Ishraque himself joined his supporters in front of Jamuna.
He announced that they would not leave Jamuna until their demands were met.
In the past week, his supporters had been blocking roads in front of Nagar Bhaban, the High Court area, and other locations to demand his declaration as mayor according to the court's verdict. On this day as well, they held their position throughout the day at the Matsya Bhaban intersection.
After sunset, several thousand party leaders and activists joined the protest rally in front of Jamuna. Ishraque was present with them. He has already declared that his supporters will not leave Jamuna without securing their demands.
On February 1, 2020, the Dhaka South City Corporation election was held. BNP’s Ishraque Hossain lost to Awami League’s Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh by a margin of nearly 200,000 votes.
On March 27, the Election Tribunal, led by Dhaka’s First Joint District Judge and Election Tribunal Judge Md Nurul Islam, annulled the result of the 2020 DSCC election that had declared Fazle Noor Taposh the winner and declared BNP leader Ishraque as the mayor.
After receiving a copy of the tribunal's verdict, the Election Commission sought legal advice from the Ministry of Law on April 22, regarding the publication of a gazette.
Then, on April 27, the Election Commission (EC) published a gazette officially declaring Ishraque Hossain as the rightful mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
