Most leaders in Moulvibazar say 'no' to Bhuiyan, Saifur
Naser Rahman's alleged abuse of power annoyed seniorBNP leaders in district, insiders say
SAIFUR RAHMAN and ABDUL MANNAN BHUIYAN
Majority of BNP leaders in Moulvibazar district are with newly appointed secretary general Khandaker Delwar Hussain. They said they will not support party stalwart Saifur Rahman and expelled secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan. Talking to this correspondent, they said BNP was organised by Ziaur Rahman and now Begum Zia is the symbol of unity and ideology of party unity. So, BNP led by Begum Zia is the main stream of the organisation, they said. This correspondent talked to many front ranking BNP leaders, some of whom were stripped of positions in last five years. They were found unhappy with BNP stalwart Saifur Rahman and his son former lawmaker M Naser Rahman. Naser Rahman, president of district BNP, and its general secretary Fayzul Karim Mayun are now in detention on corruption charges. At least eight other leaders of district BNP committee are also in jail and at least 25 are on the run to evade arrest. All of them were earlier known to be aligned with Naser Rahman. After assuming the post of Moulvibazar district BNP president, Naser Rahman reorganised the district committee by taking in his loyalists and dropping senior leaders. Leaders who were sidelined by Naser Rahman in last five years have now become active again. They are contacting grassroots leaders and activists to reorganise the party in the district, party sources said. In last five years, Saifur Rahman enjoyed absolute authority in party affairs in Moulvibazar. But the scenario has changed now, party insiders said while talking to this correspondent. Saifur's reported support to Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and takeover as party chief will not created any positive impression among senior and dedicated party leaders in the district, they said. After being elected lawmaker in a by-election in 2001, Naser Rahman took over as president of Moulvibazar BNP and dissolved the district committee. He dropped many senior leaders and appointed his loyalists to different posts including that of general secretary. This angered most of the senior leaders but they remained silent. They have now become active while many of Naser loyalists are behind the bar or on the run, party sources said. Begum Khaleda Rabbani, former president of district BNP and former lawmaker from women's reserved seat, now leads BNP in Moulvibazar. She is a staunch supporter of Begum Khaleda Zia, the sources claimed. BNP senior leaders earlier dropped from the district committee are now united under the leadership of Khaleda Rabbani and trying to reorganise the party. They include former general secretary advocate Juned Ahmed, former joint secretary Muazzem Hussain Matuk and former organising secretary Musharraf Hussain Badshah, the sources said. Talking to this correspondent, Khaleda Rabbani and the three leaders said they have extended their support to Khandaker Delwar Hussain. They said Naser, by abusing power, sidelined many dedicated party men at different levels and harmed BNP in Moulvibazar. They said they would not follow Saifur Rahman as he aligned himself with Mannan Bhuiyan. Khaleda Rabbani said a good number of party leaders came to her house on September 5 (the day following Khaleda Zia's arrest) to reiterate their allegiance to her leadership. She claimed that many others at upazila level are maintaining contact with her. However, senior vice president of district BNP advocate Mujibur Rahman Mujib was found loyal to Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan. He expressed his support to reforms proposed by BNP secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan. “It is not important who will lead the party. Reform is now important for each BNP man”, he said. He also criticised 'corrupt' leaders in Moulvibazar BNP. He however declined to name who are with him in Moulvibazar in supporting Mannan Bhuiyan. Alleged misuse of power by his sons in last five years is mainly responsible for this, they said. So, it is natural that majority of senior BNP leaders who were stripped of party positions by his son (Naser), will now stand against him.
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