TDS Desk:

BNP’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has said that the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education have been overtaken by a special group.

He claimed that all educational institutions have been influenced by Jamaat, and individuals with Jamaat-minded ideologies have been appointed to positions in major universities.

He further said that just as BNP-supported individuals were sidelined during the Awami League’s tenure, they are still facing marginalization.

In a discussion organized by the Diploma Engineers Association of Bangladesh (DEAB) at the National Press Club on Tuesday, Rizvi expressed concerns about the Secondary and Higher Education Division (Moushi), which allegedly said that no one should speak against the state or government.

He compared this to former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s statements, claiming the government and the state have become one under her leadership

Rizvi emphasized that democracy inherently includes discussion and criticism, and the government should embrace criticism if it is a government of the people.

Rizvi further argued that opposing the state is a crime, but opposing the government is not.

He criticized Moushi for prohibiting criticism against both the government and the state.

He also highlighted a corruption case involving a secretary in the public administration, who allegedly has assets worth millions of taka but remains in office despite the allegations.

Regarding the interim government, Rizvi said that many political parties view the victory of July-August as exclusively their own, and they believe the interim government is their government.

He suggested that this government is supported by a specific political group, pointing to actions that prove this alignment.

He commented that the interim government was supposed to be revolutionary, eliminating corrupt officials and empowering those who stood for the people.

However, he criticized the situation where former allies of the old regime are still in positions of power, making demands within the Secretariat.

Rizvi expressed that this was not what the people expected.

Rizvi also mentioned that the government has imposed VAT and taxes, following the advice of anti-people bureaucrats.

The discussion was chaired by Engineer Mohammad Hanif, founding president of DEAB, with participation from BNP Chairperson’s Advisor Mohammad Habibur Rahman Habib, and BNP’s Assistant Health Secretary Dr Parvez Reza Kakon, among others.