With the formal election campaign for the 13th National Parliamentary Election beginning Thursday, BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman has chosen Sylhet to kick off his nationwide poll drive, following a long-standing party tradition of starting campaigns from the shrine city.
Tarique Rahman arrived in Sylhet Wednesday evening, ending a gap of nearly two decades since his last visit, and paid respects at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal (RA) ahead of Thursday’s first official campaign rally.
BNP leaders said the symbolic start underlines the party’s effort to reconnect with voters as the election race officially opens.
Tarique reached Sylhet Osmani International Airport around 8pm Wednesday, arriving from Dhaka with his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman and a senior party delegation that included BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
From the airport, he travelled in a motorcade to the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal (RA), where he arrived at around 9:20pm.
After offering prayers at the shrine, Tarique Rahman visited the grave of General MAG Osmani, commander-in-chief of 1971 Liberation War, located within the shrine complex.
He later left for the nearby shrine of Hazrat Shahparan (RA) at around 9:45pm.
Sylhet district BNP President Abdul Qayyum Chowdhury said: “BNP founder Ziaur Rahman and former prime minister Khaleda Zia also began their election campaigns from Sylhet after visiting the shrine. Tarique Rahman is continuing that tradition by launching his campaign from here.”
The road from the airport to the shrine witnessed a heavy turnout of BNP leaders, activists and local residents, who lined both sides to greet Tarique Rahman.
The convoy slowed significantly due to the crowd, taking more than an hour to reach the shrine.
Party leaders repeatedly appealed to supporters to clear the road to allow the vehicles to pass.
Senior BNP figures, including joint secretary general Humayun Kabir, chairperson’s advisers Khandaker Abdul Muktadir, MA Malik and Enamul Haque Chowdhury, central organizing secretary GK Gaus, and several Sylhet district and metropolitan leaders, were present during the shrine visit.
Law enforcement agencies deployed additional security around the shrine area.
After visiting the shrines, Tarique Rahman was scheduled to visit his in-laws’ home in Biraimpur village of South Surma upazila, where he would pay respects at family graves.
He was to spend the night at a hotel near the airport.
Thursday, the first day of the official campaign, Tarique Rahman is set to exchange views with young voters in the morning before addressing BNP’s inaugural election rally at the Sylhet Government Alia Madrasa ground around 11am.
After the rally, he will travel by road to Dhaka, stopping at public meetings in Moulvibazar and Habiganj, where he is expected to formally introduce BNP-nominated candidates.
BNP leaders said the Sylhet program marks the party’s full-scale entry into the election campaign as nationwide canvassing begins.
