Shawdesh Desk: Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Sunday celebrated its 41st founding anniversary with a call for forging national unity by strengthening the party to oust the ‘fascist government’ and to establish a ‘people’s government’.

Addressing discussions in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country, to mark the founding anniversary, BNP leaders alleged that the Awami League government failed in every sector and was now set to destroy the opposition BNP and dissenting voices.

Alleging that the government does not believe in democracy and that BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia was kept confined due to political vengeance and her struggle to establish democracy, they stressed the need for strengthening movement to free Khaleda.

Terming Khaleda as ‘mother of democracy’, they said that democracy means Khaleda and Khaleda means democracy.

They said that BNP was founded on September 1, 1978 for historical need against the backdrop of the failures and misrule of Bangladesh Krishok Sramik Awami League.

In Dhaka, BNP central leaders and leaders of its front organisations placed wreaths at the grave of party founder Ziaur Rahman at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the morning and the central party organised a discussion at Engineers’ Institution in the afternoon to mark the day.

Addressing the discussion as the chair, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir stressed the need for strengthening the party, forgetting small differences among the party activists.

‘There is no alternative to national unity. We will have to free democracy by aligning people with us, which will strengthen the party. Khaleda Zia is the symbol of democracy. We have to free her with our best efforts to free democracy,’ he said.

Fakhrul demanded immediate national election under a neutral government and a neutral election commission to elect people’s representatives to form a people’s government.

He alleged that the Awami League government had no friend internationally and that they failed in solving the Rohingya problem. ‘BNP solved the Rohingya crisis in 1978 and in 1992, but the government is failing now. BNP is urgently needed at this juncture,’ he added.

Addressing the discussion as the chief guest, BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain alleged that AL had murdered democracy twice — first by founding BKSAL in 1975 and then in December 29, 2018 night, the night prior to the December 30, 2018 national elections, by stuffing ballots to forcefully grab the power.

‘But BNP freed democracy twice — first by introducing multi-party democracy by Zia and the second time by introducing parliamentary democracy in 1991 after ousting the autocrat government,’ he said.

BNP standing committee member Moudud Ahmed said that BNP was passing through a crisis for a brief period while the country was now witnessing ‘judicial oppression’.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal president ASM Abdur Rob stressed the need for a greater unity to free Khaleda and an end to the ongoing misrule.

The party standing committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, Gonoforum general secretary Reza Kibria, BNP Dhaka city president Habib-un-Nabi Sohel, Khelafate Majlish chairman Moulana Mohammad Ishak, Nur Hossain Kashemi of Jomiyate Ulamaye Bangladesh, Liberal Democratic Party secretary General (retd) Redwan Ahmed, Labour Party chairman Mustafizur Rahman Iran, among others, also spoke.

Reports received from Shariatpur said, at least 25 BNP activists were injured as a group of unnamed attackers swooped on the people attending the BNP programme in front of the house of the district general secretary Nasir Uddin in the district town.

Reports from the districts said that the BNP processions were barred by the police in Brahamanbaria, Lalmonirhat and Jashore.