Although the BNP is talking of launching tough anti-government movement after the Eid-ul-Fitr, the party high command is apparently hesitant over taking any firm decision about it as the party is in the grip of internal feuds at different levels.
A large number of party men in cities, districts and upazila units across the country are openly divided into different groups under different leaders. The failure in reorganising the party and its different front bodies is seen as another reason behind hesitation among the senior leaders in throwing any concrete movement programme, party insiders said..
In this backdrop, a number of party leaders believe that the proposed movement may not work like the street movement prior to the January-5 election. There is however, a section of party leaders who believe that the movement will succeed as the people are ‘very annoyed and unhappy ‘ with the government for its “misrule and misdeeds.”
The positive minded leaders said that the Awami League would not initiate any dialogue unless and until the BNP could show its street power through agitation. The dependence on diplomats, they think would not bring any positive result unless and until the party could wage any tough agitation.
BNP standing committee member Brig Gen (Retd) ASM Hannan Shah said that they would launch a tough movement after the Eid-ul-Fitr, which will ultimately ensure downfall of the government. The government won’t be able to foil the movement through harassment and torture, as the countrymen are eagerly waiting for a successful anti-government movement, he added. A mid-led leader, however, said that internal feud in the party exists from the capital to the grassroots level.
If the party launches movement before resolving the internal feud and reorganising the party, the movement would fail as happened ahead of Janurary-5 elections, he added. A grassroots level leader said that the top leaders failed to fulfill the expectations of the grassroots during the movement of the Januray-5 election. So it will be difficult to activate those frustrated leaders and workers in coming days, he observed.
BNP standing committee member Lt Gen (Retd) Mahbubur Rahman said that they would finalise their next programme learning from the past mistakes.
He hoped that their upcoming movement would get a momentum, zas the process has been taken to strengthen the party and initiative has also been taken to rectify the mistakes of the past.
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia as it appears is determined to launch a tough movement just after the Eid to force the government to arrange a fresh election under a non-party government system. She made it categorically clear at different programmes that they would wage a massive movement after the Eidul Fitr.
The BNP chief planning to launch movement into two phases- an issue-based movement just after the Eid-ul-Fitr and the oust-government-movement soon after the Eid-ul-Azha, party insiders said.
As part of the strategy of the BNP to launch a successful movement, the party has taken initiative in the month of Ramzan to ease internal feuds and reorganise the party through Iftar party, said a party leader.
