UNB, Dhaka :
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia is likely to give another ultimatum to the government in December as part of her final push for accepting her demand for holding a fresh election under a non-party administration through talks to avert a Dhaka-centric fierce movement.
Party sources said, Khaleda, on completion of her party’s ongoing countrywide mass campaign, will call for a big rally in Dhaka in the last week of December from where she will issue the last ultimatum for dialogue to break the political standoff.
In case of any obstruction to the Dhaka rally by the government, Khaleda will come up with the ultimatum at a press conference, the sources added. The BNP chief will also spell out some action programmes like hartal, gherao, non-cooperation and blockade to be enforced by the BNP-led 20-party alliance if her ultimatum goes unheeded.
Her party’s ongoing mass campaign is set to end with her Comilla rally scheduled for November 29.
“She may hold two more rallies, including one in Chittagong division,” a BNP leader close to Khaleda told UNB wishing anonymity. Khaleda had also issued ultimatums thrice last year before waging a decisive movement before the January-5 election.
The BNP leader said, their party this time will not carry out their decisive movement for a longer period as they did last year. “Instead, the party will try to get a positive outcome within 10-15 days through a vigorous movement, mainly in Dhaka,” he added.
Party senior leaders said, they will focus this time on staging a vigorous movement in Dhaka by mobilising their bonafide activists in the capital city from across the country.
According to them, Khaleda Zia will discuss the final movement strategy with her party’s senior leaders as she is going to sit with BNP advisory council members on Monday while with vice-chairmen and joint secretaries on Tuesday.
The plan will be finalised at the meting with her party’s standing committee members on Thursday.
Contacted, BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam said they are now going with the first stage of their movement through the countrywide mass campaign and public rallies. “We’ll intensify our movement once the mass campaign ends.”
He said, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia will work out the party’s next course of action and movement strategy at the meeting with party standing committee members on November 13.
Asked whether they have any plan to hold a rally in Dhaka in December to issue an ultimatum to the government, he said party policymakers will decide it.
BNP standing committee member Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman said, “People have been eagerly waiting for a call for a decisive movement. But we still want a reasonable and peaceful solution to the problem through talks to avoid violence and public sufferings.”
He said, they will wait for a certain period for a government initiative to engage in dialogue to overcome the current political deadlock. “But, we’ll have no option but to take harsher programmes like hartal, blockade and non-cooperation if the government blocks our movement and continues its repressive acts instead of responding to our call for talks,” Mahbub said.
BNP Dhaka city unit member secretary Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel said they have almost completed the task of reorganising the party’s Dhaka City unit to strengthen its organisational capacity.
“Our leader (Khaleda) has said she’ll call for the movement in due time. She’ll soon announce the action programme, and Dhaka city unit BNP is all set to make the movement a success this time,” he said.
Sohel further said, they together with people will wage a strong movement and force the current regime to quit and arrange a fresh election under a non-party administration as per people’s demand.
BNP joint secretary general M Shahjahan said the movement will get a new dimension after the mass campaign programme.
