Staff Correspondent:

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Wednesday said the country is ‘going through a dangerous conspiracy’ hatched by both local and international quarters, but hoped that a fair election will be held before Ramadan, enabling people to cast their votes after 16 years.

He made the remarks after placing wreaths and offering fateha at the grave of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam on Dhaka University premises on the occasion of the poet’s 49th death anniversary.

Rizvi said the people of Bangladesh are still deprived of many rights.

“The ultimate goal of our movement, democracy, has not yet been established. But we believe that very soon, before Ramadan, a free and fair election will take place. Then, the voters of this country, who have been unable to vote for 16 years, will finally be able to exercise their right,” he said.

Alongside this, he said, other essential conditions of democracy—such as ensuring a sense of security among the people, establishing the rule of law and guaranteeing justice—must also be ensured.

“The courts must become the last refuge for the helpless. We must advance towards building such a society,” he added.

Referring to Nazrul’s inspiration, Rizvi said, “The source of people’s inspiration in fulfilling this goal is National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. He was a poet of humanity, love and rebellion. In every struggle for national achievement and rights—from the anti-British movement, the Liberation War, the mass movement of the nineties to the recent world-shaking uprising—his songs and poems inspired people, taking them to the streets reciting his verses and singing his songs.”

He went on to say, “We did not hesitate to stand fearless in front of the tyrant’s bullets because our voices carried the songs and poems of Kazi Nazrul Islam. Whenever the people of this country are deprived of their rights, it is his poetry and songs that unite them, ignite their determination to break the shackles of oppression.”

The BNP leader said Nazrul never hesitated to wield his sharp pen against colonial powers.

“Through his poems, songs and creations, he instilled a spirit in the entire nation. With that spirit, our leader Khaleda Zia and Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman have carried forward the struggle, which found its ultimate expression in the July movement,” Rizvi added.