A huge procession and rally were held in support of suspended BNP leader and veteran freedom fighter Fazlur Rahman at the Itna Haor Upazila Sadar in Kishoreganj on Monday. Thousands of leaders, activists and common people participated in the rally.
The presence of freedom fighters was particularly eye-catching. After the meeting, the procession started at Itna Chowrasta and ended at the college grounds in the evening. The participants entered the Upazila Sadar in boats. Amidst the fleet of hundreds of boats and slogans, a festive atmosphere was created throughout Itna Sadar.
The rally was presided over by freedom fighter Rowshan Ali Russo. Freedom fighter Abdus Sattar, Niharendu Debnath, Nabi Hossain Taju Mia and Fazlur Rahman’s wife, Advocate Umme Kulsum Rekha, son Barrister Avhik Rahman, among others, also spoke.
Advocate Fazlur Rahman’s home is in Itna. He is the BNP MP candidate for Kishoreganj-4 constituency comprising Itna, Mithamoin and Ashtagram upazilas. He had been campaigning in the area for a long time. However, recently, all his party posts were suspended for three months.
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Fazlur Rahman said that various conspiracies are going on against him in the country. Razakars and Al-Badrs are trying to prevent him from getting a nomination from the party. He said: “Even if they spend Tk500 crore, they will want me not to get the party’s MP nomination. But it is not my wish alone; you also have to say that we want this leader. We want to vote for our preferred candidate with the paddy sheaf mark.”
Senior BNP leader Fazlur Rahman also commented at the rally regarding the suspension of his post. He said: โI did not believe it at first; the party for which I am doing everything will make me pay my respects. For the past year, I have been protecting the spirit of Shaheed Zia, his freedom fighter face and the dignity of the liberation war. BNP is the party of freedom fighters, the party of Shaheed Zia – I am the only one who keeps saying this. However, the party has made allegations of vulgar and anti-religious statements against me. I have responded to the allegations. But they were not accepted. All my posts were suspended from the party for three months. I did not understand what my crime was. Even then, I accepted the party’s decision. You have also accepted it. Maybe this suspension will be lifted after three months.โ
He also highlighted Jamaat’s propaganda against him and said: โJamaat says I do not follow religion. No one else has said this except them. I personally believe in Sufism. I am a supporter of the Sufi sect of Hazrat Abdul Qadir Jilani, Khwaja Mainuddin Chishti, Hazrat Shahjalal and Shah Paran. But Jamaat wants to kill those who believe in Sufism. The countrymen have seen that they have taken the bodies out of the graves and burned them.โ
Regarding his candidacy for the upcoming elections, the former MP said: โI am 78 now. I will be 79 at the time of the elections. After 5 years, I will be 84 or 85. So the next election will be my last election. If you support me, I want to fight this last election.โ
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This brave freedom fighter also reminded the gathering of his long movement and struggle. He said: โAfter the fall of Hasina, I supported the current government with my life. I have spoken many times about the students and the public. But some things started coming out of the movement that I could not accept. They said the movement was not for democracy or votes, it was for reforms. An attempt was made to belittle the 1971 Liberation War. At that time, the people of the country were silent, and the freedom fighters were afraid. The party leaders also did not say anything. At that time, I said, โThe children of the razakars, the children of Al-Badr, who do not want to accept the 1971 Liberation War, let them go back to Pakistan.โโ
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On August 26, all party positions, including the primary membership, of Fazlur Rahman, a member of the BNP Chairpersonโs Advisory Council, were suspended for three months, since his response to the partyโs show-cause notice was deemed unsatisfactory.
Fazlur Rahman gave a written response, but the BNP said it did not take strict organisational measures to respect his contribution as a valiant freedom fighter. The party decision states that from now on, when giving any statement on talk shows or social media, Fazlur Rahman must always be aware that the countryโs dignity and party policies are not damaged, and the religious sentiments of the people of the country are not hurt.
For the last several months, Fazlur Rahman has been under constant threats and bullying by the Jamaat-Shibir and the mob leaders of the National Citizen Party (NCP) as he stood firm on opposing any attempt to undermine the freedom fighters and the 1971 Liberation War, which occurred openly since the fall of the Awami League government last August.
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Fazlur Rahman regularly appears on talk shows on private TV channels and social media and speaks on contemporary issues, including elections, mob violence and religious extremism.
In contrast, leaders and activists of the NCP, Jamaat-Shibir and other radical Islamist parties have been running a smear campaign to malign him, with some issuing threats of mob attacks if he had not kept silent. He has also been tagged as a collaborator of the Awami League.
Lately, the BNP politician spoke about the mass uprising and stated that the student-led anti-quota movement was masterminded by Jamaat-Shibir, terming it a dark force, triggering resentment in the anti-liberation Jamaat-Shibir and the moderate Islamist NCP, a brainchild of Muhammad Yunus.
He came under severe bullying on social media, and some NCP leaders, aka mob commanders, instigated public humiliation by throwing shoes at his posters.
As soon as the BNP served him a show-cause notice on August 24, seeking an explanation for his โabsurd,โ โoffensive and misleading,โ and โorganisationally inappropriateโ remarks, some activists of the pro-government student fronts created a mob in front of his rented house in Dhakaโs Segunbagicha. They gave abusive slogans using loudspeakers and held placards with derogatory texts written on them throughout the day with impunity. Newspapers and TV channels also criticised such a protest, but the law enforcers did not take any steps to deter them.
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In reality, Fazlur Rahman did not make comments on the Jamaatโs conspiracy out of the blue. Recently, Jamaat leader Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher told BBC Bangla that they had planned the movement and their student wing, Islami Chhatra Shibir, was at the forefront.
Earlier, many current and former leaders of Chhatra Shibir publicly explained how they contributed to organising countrywide protests, drafting the demands and press statements, providing logistical support, food and water, and their militia teams operating at several points of Dhaka on August 4-5.
Meanwhile, armed gangs of the pro-Jamaat jihadist groups in Bangladesh and Pakistan, including Hizb ut-Tahrir, Ansar al-Islam, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and Jamaat-ut-Dawa, and some former and current members of the Bangladesh Army admitted having participated actively in the anarchy in July-August when hundreds of government establishments were looted and burned, police members killed and arms looted, and snipers killed protesters and onlookers in a planned way.
Plea for safety
The situation forced Fazlur Rahman to hold a press conference at the Law Reportersโ Forum office at the Supreme Court on August 25. He was flanked by his wife, also a lawyer, and their son.
He said that the mobs were trying to kill him and his family members.
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Asked about any link between the protests and the notice, Fazlur Rahman said: โI can find a link, but I will not talk about it now. They (students) have already hit many peopleโฆ I am Fazlur Rahman, a simple person; they are hitting shoes on the cheeks of many great peopleโฆ My point is that they hit shoes, they will say that. People will judge them.
โBut to go in front of my house and kill me or to stop my fundamental rights; I have made it known to the nation. They will not hit me with shoes or hold a procession; let them do it. If necessary, if they have said something against them, let them go and file a case against me.
โI spoke about the security of my life. I have the right to live in this country. I am a freedom fighterโฆ Now, I went to my house and informed the nation, the country and the security forces through you about what is happening.
โO people of Bangladesh, I fought for you 54 years ago. I fought to create an independent country for you, the children who are shouting slogans against me today. Do I want an unjust death from you?โ
In response to a question, Fazlur Rahman said: โIf the boys or students think, if people from other parties think, that I have spoken against the Jamaat-Shibir and the anti-liberation people, I will say that. If they think that I have disrespected or hurt anyone in any way in my words, then they will respond to it politically, and I will respond to them. There is no need to kill each other for this. There is no need to create a mob in front of the house.โ
About the abusive slogans, he said: โThis is unfortunate. Even saying those words made me feel like some small children are equal to my children. I donโt even know who they are. They raised slogans in my name, to arrest the Fozu Paglaโฆetc. etc. It means that I have now become a crazy person in Bangladesh. The Jamaat people gave this name. The first person to say this name was [Jamaat leader] Mufti Amir Hamza.
โThey want to kill me, the way they created a mob in front of my houseโฆ I see, for the past year, since August 5, some of our children have created a mob and made demands, and whatever they say, they want to fulfilโฆ But a senior person like me fought for the country; if I had not fought or if the freedom fighters had not fought, these children would not have been children of Bangladesh, they would have been children of Pakistan.โ
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