Moulvibazar Correspondent :
A peaceful railway blockade programme will be held in Sylhet Division today (Saturday) as part of the ongoing 8-point demand implementation movement for the development of the railway communication system in Sylhet Division.
Conveners of the 8-point demand implementation movement in Kulaura, Azizul Islam and Atiqur Rahman Akhoi, said that all railway stations in Sylhet Division will be closed today.
Sit-in programmes will be held at Sylhet, Kulaura, Srimangal, and Saesthaganj railway stations, and a blockade will be staged at Moghbazar in Dhaka. A human chain programme will be held at the Kamalapur railway platform.
Former Sylhet Mayor Ariful Haque Chowdhury, former MP Nawab Ali Abbas Khan, and leaders of BNP and Jamaat will participate in the sit-in at Kulaura railway junction.
A huge red-flag procession was held in Kulaura on Thursday in support of the programme organised by the 8-point demand implementation movement, Kulaura. After Asr prayers, the procession started from the Kulaura Railway Junction Jame Mosque and circled the main road of the municipal town.
Present at the event were Azizul Islam and Atiqur Rahman Akhoi, conveners of the 8-point demand implementation movement in Kulaura, Kulaura Upazila Press Club President Md. Mosabbir Ali, former president of the Kulaura Journalists Association Muktadir Hossain, and Kulaura Press Club Secretary Khaled Parvez Bakhsh, Kulaura Upazila Press Club General Secretary Najmul Bari Suhel, Co-Organising Secretary Mohiuddin Ripon, July Fighter Sheikh Rana, Ariful Islam, Sadim Ahmed, Organiser Zahirul Islam Karna, Sabuj Ahmed, Aryan Ahmed and other leaders of various organisations.
The movement started in the Sylhet region last August, demanding the implementation of eight points including the renovation of the railway line on the Sylhet-Dhaka route, increasing the number of seats, and launching two new special trains.
Although the first movement was initiated by the Kulaura Demand Implementation Movement Council, the movement later spread throughout Sylhet.
Human chain programmes were held at Kulaura, Sylhet, Srimangal, Bhatera, Tilagaon, Langla and Maijgaon stations.
On 27 September, a sit-in protest was held at Kulaura Junction Station to implement the eight-point demands. During this, the protesters blocked the Chittagong-bound intercity Paharika Express train for about half an hour.
At that time, Railway Divisional Manager Mohammad Mohiuddin Arif promised the protesters that he would sit with them in Kulaura within 15 days and resolve the issue.
In view of this promise, the protesters withdrew their strike programme that day and allowed the train to proceed.
Accordingly, a three-member delegation led by Railway Divisional Manager Mohammad Mohiuddin Arif visited Kulaura Junction.
A bilateral meeting was held in the VIP waiting room of the station. Assistant Commissioner (Land) Md. Anisur Islam was present on behalf of the administration. Former MP and Jatiya Party (Kazi Zafar) Presidium Member Advocate Nawab Ali Abbas Khan, Kulaura Upazila BNP President Joynal Abedin Bachchu, General Secretary Badruzzaman Sajal, Upazila Jamaat Naib-e-Amir Md. Zakir Hossain, former Upazila Chairman Mawlana Fazlul Haque Khan Shahed, and coordinators of the 8-point demand implementation movement Azizul Islam and Atiqur Rahman Akhoi, among others, attended the meeting.
