2nd anniversary of Jan 5 polls

Conditional nod for AL, BNP rallies

The authorities have finally given permission to both the ruling Awami League and the Opposition BNP to hold their rallies in the city today (Tuesday) to mark the second anniversary of the January 5 parliamentary elections.
Both the Dhaka South City Corporation and the Dhaka Metropolitan Police have given the permission to hold the rallies in front of their respective party offices with some conditions.
The AL will hold its rally in front of its central office at Bangabandhu Avenue, while the BNP is to hold its rally in front of party headquarters at Naya Paltan in the afternoon. The Awami League was also given permission to hold another rally at Russel Square.

The ruling party will observe Janaury 5 as “Victory day for democracy”, while the BNP that boycotted the 2014 polls will observe the day as “Democracy killing day”.
Talking to journalists, the DMP Commissioner, Asaduzzaman Mia, confirmed that both the parties were given conditional permission to hold their rallies in front of their respective party offices. He, however, warned that they would take stern action if anyone tried to carry out destructive activities in the name of political programme.
“For the sake of public safety, we will deal with all parties in same manner,” he said. Earlier, DSCC Mayor Sayeed Khokon said as both parties had sought Suhrawardy Udyan for holding their rallies, no one was given permission for the particular venue.
“The BNP will have to hold its rally at Naya Paltan and the Awami League at Bangabandhu Avenue,” he said while briefing reporters at Nagar Bhaban yesterday (Monday).
The Awami League high-ups have asked its leaders and workers to remain vigilant across the country so that BNP-Jamaat elements cannot create unrest as they did last year, party insiders told The Independent.
When contacted, AL organising secretary Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said the party was smelling conspiracy in the BNP’s plan to mark January 5 as “Democracy killing day”.
“And this is why our leaders and workers have been asked to remain vigilant on the day to avoid any untoward situation. We all know how BNP-Jamaat activists unleashed a reign of terror on this day last year. But they will not be allowed to do the same this time in the name of political programme,” he said.
The AL has decided to hold rallies at two places in the capital, moving away from its earlier plan to hold rallies at 18 points.
“We changed our plans keeping the traffic problem in mind. The capital came to almost a standstill yesterday due to the 68th founding anniversary of the Bangladesh Chhatra League,” AL office secretary Abdus Sobhan Golap said. On January 5, 2014, the AL assumed office for the second time. In all, 153 representatives of the 10th Parliament were elected unopposed as the country’s major political party, the BNP, had boycotted the elections.
At an extended meeting at the party headquarters, AL joint general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif warned that the people will give a fitting reply to leaders and workers of the BNP if they try to create anarchy in the name of observing political programme. He also called upon AL leaders and workers to make today’s programme a success.
Sources said the BNP is making massive preparations for today’s rally, the first after its movement last year. The party wants to organise a huge show to mark the day.
As part of the preparations, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, who will address the gathering as chief guest, yesterday held a meeting with the party’s senior leaders to discuss strategies to make the rally a success.
Earlier, addressing a press briefing, party acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said they want to hold the rally in a peaceful manner.
“The BNP will not go for any violent programme,” he said after a meeting with leaders of the city BNP and the party’s associate organisations.
The BNP leader further said they want to hold the rally wherever the government gives them permission.
Field level leaders were given instructions to ensure that party workers and supporters joined the rally in large numbers to. Leaders and activists from Savar, Ashulia, Narayanganj, and Munshiganj were also asked to participate in the programme, insiders said.
According to conditions laid down by the police, the rallies must be held within the police cordon. Activists will not be allowed to come to the meeting in a procession. They will not be allowed to carry sticks with flags, banners or festoons tied to them.
 Smooth flow of traffic has to be ensured. However, a DMP officer, on condition of anonymity, said if the rally venue overflowed, they would allow the parties to use one lane of the road adjacent to their party offices.
The rallies will be allowed between 2:00pm and 5:00pm, according to DMP media and public relations officials.
The DMP will not permit the use of loudspeakers in areas other than those permitted by the police, they said.

2nd anniversary of Jan 5 polls

Conditional nod for AL, BNP rallies

The authorities have finally given permission to both the ruling Awami League and the Opposition BNP to hold their rallies in the city today (Tuesday) to mark the second anniversary of the January 5 parliamentary elections. Both the Dhaka South City Corporation and the Dhaka Metropolitan Police have given the permission to hold the rallies in front of their respective party offices with some conditions. The AL will hold its rally in front of its central office at Bangabandhu Avenue, while the BNP is to hold its rally in front of party headquarters at Naya Paltan in the afternoon. The Awami League was also given permission to hold another rally at Russel Square. The ruling party will observe Janaury 5 as Victory day for democracy, while the BNP that boycotted the 2014 polls will observe the day as Democracy killing day. Talking to journalists, the DMP Commissioner, Asaduzzaman Mia, confirmed that both the parties were given conditional permission to hold their rallies in front of their respective party offices. He, however, warned that they would take stern action if anyone tried to carry out destructive activities in the name of political programme. For the sake of public safety, we will deal with all parties in same manner, he said. Earlier, DSCC Mayor Sayeed Khokon said as both parties had sought Suhrawardy Udyan for holding their rallies, no one was given permission for the particular venue. The BNP will have to hold its rally at Naya Paltan and the Awami League at Bangabandhu Avenue, he said while briefing reporters at Nagar Bhaban yesterday (Monday). The Awami League high-ups have asked its leaders and workers to remain vigilant across the country so that BNP-Jamaat elements cannot create unrest as they did last year, party insiders told The Independent. When contacted, AL organising secretary Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said the party was smelling conspiracy in the BNPs plan to mark January 5 as Democracy killing day. And this is why our leaders and workers have been asked to remain vigilant on the day to avoid any untoward situation. We all know how BNP-Jamaat activists unleashed a reign of terror on this day last year. But they will not be allowed to do the same this time in the name of political programme, he said. The AL has decided to hold rallies at two places in the capital, moving away from its earlier plan to hold rallies at 18 points. We changed our plans keeping the traffic problem in mind. The capital came to almost a standstill yesterday due to the 68th founding anniversary of the Bangladesh Chhatra League, AL office secretary Abdus Sobhan Golap said. On January 5, 2014, the AL assumed office for the second time. In all, 153 representatives of the 10th Parliament were elected unopposed as the countrys major political party, the BNP, had boycotted the elections. At an extended meeting at the party headquarters, AL joint general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif warned that the people will give a fitting reply to leaders and workers of the BNP if they try to create anarchy in the name of observing political programme. He also called upon AL leaders and workers to make todays programme a success. Sources said the BNP is making massive preparations for todays rally, the first after its movement last year. The party wants to organise a huge show to mark the day. As part of the preparations, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, who will address the gathering as chief guest, yesterday held a meeting with the partys senior leaders to discuss strategies to make the rally a success. Earlier, addressing a press briefing, party acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said they want to hold the rally in a peaceful manner. The BNP will not go for any violent programme, he said after a meeting with leaders of the city BNP and the partys associate organisations. The BNP leader further said they want to hold the rally wherever the government gives them permission. Field level leaders were given instructions to ensure that party workers and supporters joined the rally in large numbers to. Leaders and activists from Savar, Ashulia, Narayanganj, and Munshiganj were also asked to participate in the programme, insiders said. According to conditions laid down by the police, the rallies must be held within the police cordon. Activists will not be allowed to come to the meeting in a procession. They will not be allowed to carry sticks with flags, banners or festoons tied to them. Smooth flow of traffic has to be ensured. However, a DMP officer, on condition of anonymity, said if the rally venue overflowed, they would allow the parties to use one lane of the road adjacent to their party offices. The rallies will be allowed between 2:00pm and 5:00pm, according to DMP media and public relations officials. The DMP will not permit the use of loudspeakers in areas other than those permitted by the police, they said.