Prime Minister and BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman has accused certain political groups of deceiving people during both the 1971 Liberation War and the July 2024 uprising.
“Those who deceived the people in 1971 did exactly the same during the July movement of 2024. They say one thing publicly, but their actions reflect something else,” he said.
He made the remarks while addressing a public rally as the chief guest at Madrasa Maidan in Rajshahi on Tuesday afternoon.
Tarique said hundreds of people had been killed before what he described as an authoritarian regime fled the country. He said a memorial had been built in Dhaka on Monday in honour of those killed during the uprising.
“The BNP upholds the spirit of 1971 and 2024. It is because we uphold the spirit of 2024 that we have stood beside the July fighters,” he said, adding that the party was trying to arrange employment opportunities for families of those killed and medical treatment for injured participants in the uprising.
He said all political parties that publicly claimed to uphold the spirit of the 2024 uprising had been invited to the memorial's inauguration. However, he claimed that no representatives of those parties attended the event to pay tribute to those killed.
The prime minister also alleged that money was being channelled from across the border to create instability in Bangladesh.
“We have intelligence information about this. You have probably seen attempts to create labour unrest at several factories in different parts of the country,” he said.
Claiming that intelligence reports indicated that the regime that had fled the country was financing such activities, Tarique alleged that two groups were working together: one providing money from across the border and another attempting to create unrest within Bangladesh.
He urged the public to remain alert to what he described as efforts to destabilise the country.
Referring to political promises made before the election, Tarique said some groups had tried to mislead voters by opposing initiatives such as the Family Card.
“They asked people to reject the Family Card, claiming that its cancellation would harm women. Now we must decide whether to implement the Family Card, canal excavation programmes and agricultural cards for farmers,” he said.
He urged people who supported these initiatives to continue backing the BNP over the next five years, referring to the party's support in the February 12 election. He also cautioned against political groups that he accused of repeatedly misleading the public and attempting to steer the country in a different direction.
The rally was chaired by BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and conducted by Rajshahi City Corporation Administrator Mahfuzur Rahman Riton.
Among those who addressed the gathering were BNP Standing Committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy; Land Minister Mizanur Rahman Minu; Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir; Cultural Affairs Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury; lawmakers Abu Saeed Chand and Professor Nazrul Islam Mondol; Shafiqul Haque Milon; Dhaka District BNP General Secretary Nipুন Roy Chowdhury; and the BNP chairman's adviser, retired Major General Sharif Uddin.
Also present were State Minister for Local Government Mir Shah-e-Alam; adviser to the ministries of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology and Science and Technology, Rehan Asif Asad; BNP Industry Affairs Secretary and lawmaker Abul Kalam; reserved-seat lawmaker Mahmuda Habiba; and Krishak Dal President agriculturist Hasan Zafir Tuhin.