Strengthen anti-govt movement

As part of her meeting with professionals, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia sat with pro-BNP lawyers on Monday night and sought their pro-active role in strengthening her party’s anti-government movement.
A delegation of the lawyers went to the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office around 9pm and had the brief meeting with her.
Meeting sources said, Khaleda asked the lawyers to work together for ensuring the pro-BNP panel’s full victory in the upcoming election to Dhaka Bar Association.
The former premier also told the legal practitioners that the government has annihilated democracy through the January 5 ‘farcical’ polls. “The illegal regime is now brutally repressing
 the opposition leaders and activists across the country and carrying out extra-judicial killing to cling to power against people’s will,” a lawyer quoted Khaleda as telling them.
Voicing her concern that people are not getting justice from the court as the government highly politicised the judiciary, she urged the lawyers to be vocal against it and stand beside people for ensuring justice and human rights.
The BNP chief also said, she wants to see the contributions of the lawyers towards restoration of democracy and people’s right instead of empty slogans.
Khaleda gave the lawyers a patient hearing as they expressed their views about the January 5 elections, BNP’s movement and the party’s possible line of action and strategy to force the government to quit and arrange a fresh election. The delegation members include: former Speaker Barrister Jamiruddin Sircar, BNP chairperson’s adviser Barrister Sahjahan Omar, Supreme Court Bar Council president AJ Mohammad Ali, general secretary Mahbubuddin Khokan, its former president Zainul Abedin, BNP law affairs secretary Barrister Ziaur Rahman Khan and religious affairs secretary advocate Masud Ahmed Talukder, Dhaka Bar president Khorshed Miah Alam and its ex-president Sanaullah Miah.
BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and chairperson’s adviser Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury were also present.
The BNP chief also had separate meetings with delegations of Bangladesh Sammilito Peshajibi Parishad and Doctors’ Association of Bangladesh (DAB) on January 22 and January 24 respectively.