Water Resources Minister and BNP Joint Secretary General Md. Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee has said the foundation of the July uprising was built through the BNP’s 17-year struggle against the previous government.
“Where were the other opposition parties during those 17 years?” he asked, saying an uprising required a foundation and that the BNP’s continuous movement had created it.
He made the remarks at a discussion titled ‘Unity, not division, in building a just and discrimination-free society’, organised by ‘Amra Bangladeshi’ at the National Press Club in the capital on Tuesday.
He criticised the parliamentary opposition for saying it would cooperate with “good” members of the Awami League, arguing that such remarks had created political divisions.
Not all Awami League members had fled the country, he said, while also raising questions over the wealth accumulated by some opposition figures before the elections.
Annie accused the opposition of remaining absent from past democratic movements, including the movement against military ruler HM Ershad and later protests against what he described as “Awami fascism”.
He also recalled the alleged torture of opposition activists by Detective Branch police during the Awami League government’s tenure.
The minister said the current government had not been able to resolve every problem within five months of taking office, blaming 17 years of theft and looting for the country’s continuing economic and social difficulties.
He said governing a densely populated country of more than 200 million people was challenging, particularly as available land continued to decline.
Following the ideals of martyred president Ziaur Rahman, several projects were being undertaken under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to create a national awakening, Annie said.
Prime Minister’s Political Assistant Rashed Khan said people had been “enchanted by the magic of Tarique Rahman”, praising his leadership and efforts to reduce government expenditure.
Rashed alleged that while the BNP believed in unity, Jamaat-e-Islami did not share the same approach.
He claimed that Yunus had previously pursued a “minus formula” aimed at keeping the BNP out of power and that Jamaat had planned to bring the National Citizen Party to power, delaying the election until February.
Rashed described it as “a shame for the country” that those who did not believe in Bangladesh’s independence now constituted the parliamentary opposition.
He also said cracks had already appeared within their 11-party alliance.
MP Shahadat Hossain Selim echoed the call for political unity.
“We want unity, not division,” he said.
