Jatrabari rally: Tarique Rahman urges party men to offer Fajr prayers at polling centres to thwart plots

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairman Tarique Rahman has called on party leaders and activists to offer the Fajr prayer at polling centres on election day to thwart conspiracies surrounding the 13th national parliamentary election.

He urged them to remain at the centres from early morning, saying, “Go to the polling centre and offer the Fajr prayer there. Stay there so that no one can carry out any conspiracy. Casting your vote is not enough; do not leave after voting. Ensure the vote is properly counted and accounted for.”

He made the remarks while addressing an election rally for the Dhaka-5 constituency on Shahid Faruk Road in Jatrabari, in the capital on Monday afternoon.

The rally was presided over by BNP’s candidate for the constituency, Nabi Ullah Nabi.

“Those who have deprived the people of Bangladesh of their voting rights for the past 16 years have an accomplice. They are conspiring behind the scenes. Everyone has seen in newspaper reports that their people were caught while attempting to produce fake ballots. You must therefore remain cautious and vigilant,” Tarique Rahman said.

The BNP chairman joined the Jatrabari rally after 5:00 pm.

Addressing leaders, activists, and supporters, he outlined BNP’s plans for nation-building. He said that building the country requires clear planning; changing the nation’s destiny requires concrete programmes; and moving the country forward demands experience—experience that, he said, only the BNP possesses.

“We hear many pleasing words from many political parties—sweet-sounding promises that may make us feel good and prompt loud applause. But governing a country is not that simple; it is an extremely challenging task,” he stated.

During the rally, leaders and supporters standing near the stage raised concerns about the acute gas shortage in their area.

In response, Tarique Rahman said that previous governments imported gas from abroad to enable their own affiliates to profit from commissions. But they failed to discover new domestic gas fields.

He said Bangladesh has abundant gas reserves and stressed the need to explore and extract domestic gas to overcome the energy crisis.

Tarique Rahman announced plans to establish an Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in the Demra–Jatrabari area.

He also pledged to reopen closed factories in the region to create new employment opportunities. At the request of Nabi Ullah Nabi, he further promised to establish a hospital in the area to ensure healthcare services for residents of the Dhaka-5 constituency.

Tarique Rahman paid tribute to those in the Demra–Jatrabari area who had taken to the streets in past movements to restore voting rights and who fell victim to enforced disappearances and killings.

He also thanked the people of Jatrabari for their leading role in driving out authoritarian rule during the July movement.