We have BJP’s blessing, says Bangladeshi BJP

Chairman of the recently surfaced Bangladesh Janata Party has claimed that his party has been formed with the blessing of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – the ruling party of neighbouring India. Mithun Chowdhury, chairman of the BJP namesake made the claim while talking to Bangla Tribune on Thursday night. He also said that his party would not be involved in any sort of religion-centric politics; rather, it would work on national issues. The party chairman also said that he had met with some senior leaders of BJP in India but did not reveal their names. He also said his party was going to be a major political party of Bangladesh in recent future. Mithun, a businessman hailing from Sunamganj’s Jamalganj upazila, said that India is a friendly country and it maintains a strong relation with all the 40 registered political parties in our country. So, he doesn’t see anything odd in his party’s relation with India. The newly emerged leader said BJP is concerned about the minorities living in Bangladesh and it wants to improve the living conditions of the minorities. Asked whether the logo of their party, which is quite similar to the BJP logo, was inspired by the logo of BJP, Mithun replied: “Our name and logo are different from BJP; their logo is only a lotus while our one is the lotus being held up by a pair of hands. The hands represent that we are being persecuted and we pray to God to relieve us of this plight.” The leader announced to resolve a wide range of issues if they come to power through the next national election. The issues include the complexities of the Vested Property Act, the ongoing controversy surrounding the Chief Justice and establishment of a separate ministry for the minorities in Bangladesh. He also declared that they would transform the existing divisions into provinces and establish prayer rooms in the educational institutions for the students of all religion. He said that his party is going to have a roundtable conference with Muslim scholars in the country on September 25. “We will form an alliance of more than hundred political parties where Islamic and democratic parties will also be included.” The office of the newly emerged party is at the Cosmic Tower near Dainik Bangla intersection in the capital. Earlier on September 20, Bangladesh Hindu-Buddhist-Christian Adivasi Party, along with 50 other like-minded political parties, announced the formation of the Bangladesh Janata Party.The article was first published on banglatribune.com