Tarique attends doa mahfil: Thousands pay tributes at Khaleda Zia’s grave
Staff Reporter :
Doa and milad mahfil was held across the country on Friday seeking eternal peace for the soul of BNP chairperson and former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia.
BNP Acting Chairman Rahman participated a doa and milad mahfil at Azad Mosque in the city’s Gulshan after Asr prayer.
Tarique Rahman arrived at the mosque around 4:00pm and joined the prayers on the second floor along with his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman, Shamila Rahman, wife of his late younger brother Arafat Rahman Koko, and other family members.
Senior BNP leaders present at the programme included secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, standing committee members Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Mirza Abbas, Nazrul Islam Khan, Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan and Dr A J M Zahid Hossain, among others.
A large number of party leaders, activists and general worshippers also took part in the milad.
Following the death of Begum Khaleda Zia, three days of state mourning were observed across the country, with doa and prayer programmes held at various religious institutions in her memory.
Meanwhile, thousands of people on Friday thronged Zia Uddan in the capital to pay tributes at the grave of BNP Chairperson and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, as the country observed the third and final day of national mourning following her death.
From early morning, leaders and activists of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its associate bodies, along with large numbers of ordinary citizens, gathered at the graveside to offer fateha, prayers and floral tributes.
Many visitors arrived under the banners of various political, social and professional organisations.
Law enforcement agencies, including police and members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), were deployed in and around Zia Uddan in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar to maintain law and order amid the massive turnout.
On the spot, it was seen that long lines of men and women stretched from the road in front of the parliament building, the Bailey Bridge area and adjoining streets toward the graves of BNP founder Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman and Begum Khaleda Zia.
Many visitors carried flowers as they waited patiently to pay their respects, while law enforcers struggled to manage the swelling crowd near the graveside.
Earlier in the day, close family members, including Khaleda Zia’s granddaughter Jaima Rahman, daughter of BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, and Syeda Sharmila Rahman, wife of her younger son the late Arafat Rahman Koko, visited the grave and offered prayers.
Apart from senior party leaders and activists, a large number of general people were also seen at the graveside.
Activists, well-wishers and ordinary citizens paid their respects by placing flowers, offering fateha and taking part in collective supplications.
“I came here to pay my respects to our Deshnetri Begum Khaleda Zia,” said Rafiqul Islam, 43, an activist of Jubo Dal from Mirpur-2. “May Allah grant her Jannat.”
Another visitor, Anwar Hossain, a worker, said he could not attend the funeral due to work commitments. “As today is a holiday, I came to her grave. May Allah grant her heaven,” he said.
Following Khaleda Zia’s death, the government declared three days of national mourning, with Friday marking the final day. Special prayers and worship were held at mosques, temples, churches and pagodas across the country in her memory.
Begum Khaleda Zia passed away on Tuesday, December 30, at around 6:00am while undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka.
On Wednesday, December 31, the former prime minister was laid to rest with full state honours beside the grave of her husband, martyred President Ziaur Rahman, at Zia Uddan. Her son Tarique Rahman performed the burial rites in the presence of family members, while a guard of honour was given by the armed forces.
Earlier, her funeral prayer was held at a vast ground adjacent to the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban and Manik Mia Avenue, where millions of mourners gathered to bid a final farewell to one of the country’s most influential political leaders.