Shawdesh desk:

The much-hyped Dhaka rally of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party began in front of the party central office on Wednesday afternoon amid tight security.

The rally began with recitation from the Qur’an at about 2:00pm.

Though the rally was scheduled to begin in the afternoon, huge number of leaders and activists of BNP from different corners of the city began to arrive at the rally venue from 9:00am. They carried banners, festoons and placards reading their demands.

They also carried portraits of the party founder Ziaur Rahman, chairperson Khaleda Zia and acting chairperson Tarique Rahman.

The party activists arrived at the venue defying rain.

By 1:00pm, the venue became filled with the party activists.

Meanwhile, police barred movement of transports from Nightingale Crossing to Dainik Bangla crossing by putting barricades at both the ends.

Many BNP leaders and activists, especially those who came from the city’s nearby areas, alleged that they were harassed by the police on their way to Naya Paltan venue.

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will address the rally as the chief guest and announce a ‘one-point’ simultaneous movement to press for the resignation of the Awami League government paving the way for holding the next national election under a neutral government.

BNP’s Dhaka south and north city units set up a temporary stage in front of the BNP office for the rally.

A large number of members of law enforcement agencies have been deployed in the Nayapaltan area to maintain law and order.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police issued separate notices not only allowing the BNP to hold the rally at Nayapaltan but also the ruling Awami League to hold a ‘peace rally’ not very far away at the Baitul Mokarram South Gate.

Both the parties were given permission to hold the rallies on 23 conditions, including ending the programmes by 5:00pm.

Alongside the BNP, its like-minded political parties are all going to announce the one-point demand through separate rallies in the capital on the same day.

Ganatantra Mancha, a platform of six parties that shares the BNP’s view that the government must resign ahead of elections, or otherwise be toppled through a movement, will announce their participation in the one-point movement at 4:00pm by holding a rally outside the Jatiya Press Club.

A separate 12-party alliance that similarly believes no fair election can be held under the Awami League government will come up with a similar announcement from a rally in front of Dhaka Reporters Unity.

The same is expected of the Jatiyatabadi Samomona Jote at Bijoynagar, the Liberal Democratic Party at Tejgaon and Gonoforum and People’s Party at Motijheel and Labour Party at Nayapaltan at different times of the day.

Besides, two splinter groups of the Gono Odhikar Parishad, Gonotantrik Bam Oikya, Samomona Gonotantrik Peshajibi Jote and Sadaran Chhatra Odhikar Sanrakshan Parishad will also hold rallies in front of the Jatiya Press Club at about 3:00pm and announce their participation in the one-point movement.

From conversations with the leaders of the BNP and many of the smaller parties, it is expected that the joint declaration of the one-point movement will contain the demand for the resignation of the Awami League government, dissolution of parliament, formation of the polls-time impartial government and reconstitution of the Election Commission for arranging a free, fair and inclusive election.

The unconditional release of all political prisoners, including BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, withdrawal of all ghost cases, and annulment of all false convictions towards building a democratic state and restoring the voting rights of the people through amendments to the constitution and reforming the state system will also find a place in the rhetoric, but the realisation of these will all boil down to a single overriding objective: that the next parliamentary elections be held under a neutral and non-party government.

Earlier at a public rally on December 10, 2022 in the capital’s Golapbagh field, the BNP had announced a 10-point charter of demands including the resignation of the government, the dissolution of parliament, and the transfer of power to a non-partisan government.

BNP and its like-minded parties observed various programmes, including human chains, sits-in, road marches and rallies across the country, over the last seven months since the announcement of the 10-point movement, which itself came at the end of a programme of divisional rallies that started in August.