Sabotage will be resisted politically, says Ishrak

Sabotage will be resisted politically, with the people alongside the law-enforcement agencies, said Ishrak Hossain, member of parliament for the Dhaka-6 constituency.

He said this on Tuesday (November 10) while answering journalists' questions after the monthly meeting of the Dhaka district law and order committee at the office of the Dhaka deputy commissioner.

He said that no harm can be done to a government elected with the mandate of a huge number of people by carrying out a few sporadic incidents.

Ishrak Hossain said that some days ago an attempt was made to create an unstable situation in the country through a movement of garment workers. But we believe the law-enforcement agencies handled it wisely.

He said that a so-called hartal is under way today. This hartal has no value. The people of Bangladesh have rejected the fascist Awami League with hatred. It is a banned party.

The genocide they carried out during the mass uprising of 2024 will be tried. The court will decide whether they will be allowed to do politics.

Speaking about the activities of the banned Awami League, Ishrak said that what they have been doing for some days has no political basis. Awami League leaders are carrying out sabotage by giving instructions from outside the country. There will be no benefit from doing this.

On bringing Sheikh Hasina back to the country, Ishrak said the government wants to bring her back through extradition. The process of issuing a red alert through Interpol has begun. She is being sought back in Bangladesh as an accused in genocide.

BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has expressed deep hope that Bangladesh will be able to secure compensation for environmental damage and its rightful dues from the 31st United Nations Climate Conference (COP-31) under way in Antalya, Turkey. A 21-member high-level government delegation led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman left for Turkey on Tuesday morning to join the conference.

Rizvi noted that heads of state and government from various countries are gathering at this world stage, organised to stop rising temperatures and the destruction of nature around the world. In such a complex global situation, the direct participation of Bangladesh's head of government is highly significant. Calling Prime Minister Tarique Rahman the “Green Prime Minister” among the public, he said the government's various initiatives — planting 250 million trees across the country within the next five years, a large-scale canal-digging programme, and expanding environment-friendly renewable energy — were also given top priority in the BNP's election manifesto.

Rizvi said that all of humanity is now facing an existential environmental disaster. He said it can be hoped that detailed discussions among international leaders and environmental scientists will produce realistic solutions to bring carbon dioxide emissions down to a tolerable level. Although Bangladesh's share of global pollution is almost zero, geographically the country is at the forefront of the list of worst-affected countries. This conference will therefore play a highly fruitful role in securing compensation from the international climate fund and a share of sustainable support.

Chief Whip of the National Parliament Nurul Islam Moni said at the time that, as Bangladesh, we emit very little carbon in the world. Yet Bangladesh is one of the countries most affected by climate change. The southern region of the country in particular is facing severe damage from the effects of climate change. Those who emit more carbon are not properly considering the damage to Bangladesh. That issue will be raised on behalf of Bangladesh at this conference. Nurul Islam Moni added, “We do not want mercy. We want justice.”

BNP Acting Secretary General and the Prime Minister's political and industry adviser, Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, asked why the ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina is pleading with foreigners to return to the country. He said Sheikh Hasina made mistakes, but she has no remorse. With what shame is she applying for a passport and national identity card (NID)? Does she think she will return to the country, establish fascism again, and the people will sit and watch? He said this in his speech as chief guest at a discussion organised by the Zia Parishad at the Kazi Nazrul Islam auditorium of the National Press Club on Monday, on the occasion of the historic 7 November National Revolution and Solidarity Day.

Rizvi said Sheikh Hasina is trying to obtain certificates from various foreign political figures so that the sentences against her are not enforced if she returns. Rizvi said false cases were filed against Begum Khaleda Zia and she was kept imprisoned. At that time the law minister and Awami League leaders used to say that the court moves at its own pace and the law moves at its own pace. Now, in Sheikh Hasina's case too, the law and the courts will move at their own pace. The acting secretary general further said Sheikh Hasina wants to return to the country. But who will welcome her? The mother of Abu Sayeed, the father of Mugdha, or the relatives of Ahnaf? Will the members of the martyrs' families, whose children were killed and who lost their lives to bullets, welcome her? So many youths, children, rickshaw-pullers and workers gave their lives. The stains of their blood have not yet been wiped away.

Presenting the historic context of 7 November, Rizvi said that between 1972 and 1975 the country's democracy was destroyed. Political parties were banned and newspapers were shut down. Keeping only four newspapers, all other newspapers were closed. People's freedom of speech and expression was taken away. He said the main spirit of the liberation war was democracy. The people of this country jumped into the struggle for liberation because the Pakistanis did not want to hand over power to the majority party. Yet after independence, those who came to power also oppressed the people.

He said that through the mass awakening of 7 November, Ziaur Rahman came to the centre of national politics. He was arrested on 3 November and freed on 7 November. Afterwards he built a modern army and took the country forward on the path of development and production. The martyred president Ziaur Rahman was the pioneer of today's ready-made garment industry. He also contributed to creating employment opportunities for expatriate workers abroad and to building their remittances into one of the foundations of the economy. Ziaur Rahman took the initiative to increase agricultural production by digging canals. Alongside achieving self-sufficiency in food, he also took the country to the stage of exporting rice. On foreign policy, Rizvi said Ziaur Rahman adopted an independent foreign policy. He followed the policy of friendship with whoever would protect the country's interests. Employment opportunities were created through improved relations with China, Japan, the United States and Muslim countries of the Middle East.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has reorganised the convening committee of Dhaka Metropolitan South BNP with the aim of strengthening organisational power. In the reorganised committee, freedom fighter Abdus Salam has been given the responsibility of convener and Tanvir Ahmed Robin as member secretary. This information was confirmed in a press release signed on Sunday by the party's assistant office secretary Muhammad Munir Hossain. In the announced committee, Abdul Quader Bhuiyan Jewel has been nominated as senior joint convener and A N M Saiful Islam as joint convener. Party sources said the new convening committee was approved to bring more dynamism to the organisational activities of Dhaka Metropolitan South and to keep leaders and activists organised in movements and struggles.

Md. Shafiqul Islam Khan Milton, convener of the newly formed committee of Dhaka Metropolitan North BNP, and Md. Jahangir Hossain, member secretary, exchanged greetings and courtesies with BNP Chairman and Prime Minister of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh Tarique Rahman. The exchange of greetings took place on Sunday afternoon at the Prime Minister's Office in the Parliament Secretariat. During the meeting, party chief and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman congratulated the leaders of the newly formed committee and urged them to organise the party further at the grassroots level. He also gave the newly appointed convener and member secretary necessary guidance to spread the party's ideals and programmes and to deliver proper services to people's doorsteps.