Ex-BNP lawmaker urges Iajuddin to quit post of CA

Maj. (rtd) Akhteruzzaman Ranjan

The country will move towards a 'state of confrontation among political parties' and a 'constitutional crisis' if atmosphere for a credible election is not created soon, he said while addressing a public rally at Kotiadi Pilot Boys High School in Kotiadi upazila headquarters Tuesday evening.

He made a big showdown in the upazila town to justify his claim for nomination from Kishoreganj-2 constituency (Katiadi upazila).

Ranjan said, “I was expelled from BNP three times earlier for telling the truth straightway. The party high-ups withdrew the expulsions after they realised that I was right”, he told the rally.

He said he was expelled in 1995 for suggesting that BNP should accept the caretaker government proposal by Awami League. In 1997, he was expelled for his anti-hartal stance when Awami League was in power and again in 1998 for joining the then Jatiya Sangsad session and urging party men not to boycott it.

Ranjan was elected with BNP ticket defeating Awami League's Habibur Rahman in 1991 and MA Afzal in 1996. As an alliance candidate in 2001, he lost to AL leader Prof. Dr M A Mannan with 1,795 votes. Ranjan got 48,411 votes and Mannan got 50,206.

In the coming election, freedom fighter Ranjan however has four contenders for alliance ticket. They are Ruhul Amin Akil, president of Dhaka city (North) Jubo Dal; his wife Fahmida Islam; Mahmudul Islam and journalist Shafiqul Islam, all based in Dhaka.

He urged the people not to vote for corrupt candidates, black money holders, loan defaulters and godfathers.

“People of Kotiadi will boycott all other contestants from the constituency. I should get nomination if the party high command makes a correct evaluation of the situation in Kotiadi”, he told the rally.

Ranjan said the current political crisis in the country has been created by a 'handful of persons' but this will affect the whole nation. This is unfortunate.

The nation will plunge into a greater crisis if a credible election is not held and people will blame political parties for that, he added.

He urged BNP chief Khaleda Zia to come out of 'clutches of flatterers' around her who 'misled' her and were involved in corruption in last five years.

The rally, presided over by former upazila BNP secretary Abdus Sobhan, was also addressed by former upazila BNP president Golam Mustafa, and another former upazila BNP secretary, Matiur Rahman.

Ranjan's relations with BNP bigwigs are not that sweet, party sources said. Katiadi upazila committee was dissolved on July 17 along with four other upazila committees by Kishoreganj district BNP president and former minister Dr Osman Faruq.

At a press release earlier, Ranjan said Kishoreganj district BNP is 'illegal' as it was run by only two membersformer education minister Dr. M Osman Faruq as president and Waliullah Rabbani as secretary.