Leaders of Sanatan Hindu religious organisations boycotted a preparatory meeting for the upcoming Sharadiya Durga Puja in Bogura on Monday after the Deputy Commissioner (DC) curtailed discussions without hearing their statements.
The incident occurred in the conference room of the Bogura District Commissioner’s office during a session convened by the district administration to plan for peaceful celebrations.
The meeting, which began around 11am, brought together representatives of Sanatan religious groups, the Puja Udjapan Parishad, and affiliated fronts from all 13 upazilas across the district.
Rezaul Karim Badsha, Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bogura Sadar constituency and President of the district Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), attended the meeting as the chief guest.
According to eyewitnesses, after four or five upazila-level Puja Udjapan Committee representatives had spoken, Bogura Deputy Commissioner Toufiqur Rahman announced that the discussion would be shortened due to another pre-scheduled programme.
Speeches were subsequently delivered by political leaders and representatives of local law enforcement agencies.
This decision angered many present leaders who were prevented from addressing local issues and proposals regarding the festival.
Led by Parimal Chandra Das, President of the Bogura District Puja Udjapan Parishad, aggrieved leaders expressed strong resentment, caused a commotion, and walked out of the meeting room.
The situation was brought under control by local MP Rezaul Karim Badsha, upon whose request the Puja Udjapan Parishad leaders rejoined the administrative meeting.
However, no further discussions took place after they returned.
Commenting on the incident, Principal Bikash Chandra Saha, President of the Dhunat Upazila Puja Udjapan Parishad, stated that only three or four representatives had spoken before him, and the announcement to curtail their time caused widespread dissatisfaction.
Parimal Chandra Das, who is also a former councillor, expressed deep grievance over the DC’s conduct, highlighting that local representatives travel 30 to 35 kilometres from distant upazilas for this single annual opportunity to speak with the district administration.
He noted that the Deputy Commissioner cited an upcoming Teacher’s Day meeting to limit their time, arguing that if time was constrained, the session should have been rescheduled for the following day rather than inviting and disrespecting the leaders.
Acknowledging the commotion, Bogura Deputy Commissioner Md Toufiqur Rahman stated that the district committee leaders did not speak during their designated slot.
He added that the leaders felt hurt and walked out towards the end of the meeting when law enforcement representatives were speaking, questioning why adequate time had not been allocated to them, though they subsequently returned to the session.
