A concert by popular Bangladeshi band Ashes, scheduled to take place at the Old Stadium in Kishoreganj on Wednesday (19 August), has been postponed following objections and protests from local religious leaders and the Imam-Ulama Parishad.
The concert had been scheduled as part of a music event at the stadium.
However, the Imam-Ulama Parishad raised objections to the programme, claiming that organising music and concerts was contrary to Islamic Sharia.
Leaders of the Sadar Upazila Imam-Ulama Parishad submitted a memorandum to the district administration, urging authorities to stop the concert.
In the memorandum, they said a music concert had been scheduled at Kishoreganj Old Stadium on 19 August and expressed concerns that activities involving music could violate Islamic Sharia.
They also claimed that similar events had previously faced opposition from local religious leaders and residents and were not held despite receiving administrative permission.
The religious leaders warned that holding the concert could create dissatisfaction and tension among sections of the local community.
They requested the district administration to take necessary measures to prevent the event.
Copies of the memorandum were also submitted to the Kishoreganj superintendent of police, relevant district administration officials and other concerned departments.
Following the appeal, local authorities decided to postpone the concert, citing the need to maintain law and order.
Kishoreganj Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Ishtiaq Emon told the media, “The concert was being organised by a local restaurant, Alishan Restaurant. We called the organisers in for a discussion. The problem is that they had neither applied for registration nor obtained a hotel licence as required under the Hotel Registration Act. There is no scope for us to approve any activity organised by an unregistered or unauthorised establishment. We informed them that since they were not registered, we could not grant permission for the activities they had requested approval for.”
Ashes confirmed the postponement in a social media post.
“Dear Kishoreganj! Due to some unforeseen circumstances on the administration’s part, today’s concert at the Old Stadium has been postponed. We hope to see you again,” the band wrote.
The organisers have not yet announced a new date for the concert.
