Activist who donated Tk 1m to BNP leader has only Tk 3,412 in his bank account

Nur Kashem, 37, who stirred massive discussions by donating Tk 1 million to a Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader for his electoral expense, has only Tk 3,412 in his bank account.

The BNP leader seeking the party nomination for Sunamganj-1 (Tahirpur, Jamalganj, Dharmapasha and Madhnagar) is Kamruzzaman Kamrul. He is a former joint secretary of the district unit BNP and a former chairman of Tahirpur upazila parishad. He lives in Tahirpur upazila.

BNP activist Nur Kasem handed a Tk 1 million cheque to Kamruzzaman Kamrul for election expenses at a rally stage in Sachna Bazar of Jamalganj upazila, on Saturday afternoon. Kamrul then held the cheque up for the leaders and activists present to see.

The BNP activist, Nur Kasem, lives in Mandiyata village by Tangua Haor in the Uttar Shripur union of Tahirpur upazila in Sunamganj. Speaking over the phone, he said he is mainly a farmer by profession, but also runs a small brick trading business. He has no formal education and can barely sign his name. He is not very active in BNP, but his late father Md Samsuddin, was involved in the party’s politics. He has a wife, five daughters, and a son.

Nur Kasem said that his current bank account balance stands at Tk 3,412. Speaking regarding donating such a large sum of money, he said, “I like him (Kamrul). He does good for the poor. That’s why I gave it from my heart. I don’t have that much money. If anyone asks for it now, I’ll manage— I have a plot of land in Shripur market; I can sell it to raise the money.”

When asked why he went from Tahirpur to Jamalganj to hand over the cheque, Nur Kasem said he had gone there to watch the rally. Seeing the crowd, he became emotional and later handed Kamruzzaman a garland and the cheque.

Aware that many people are now talking about the matter, Nur Kasem said, “I’m not a bad man. I earn my living through hard work. I have no ulterior motive. I’m not educated and don’t understand politics that well. I just like him from my heart. That’s why I gave it.”

BNP nomination aspirant Kamruzzaman has already stated that he will not accept the money, even though the activist gave it out of affection. He sees it purely as a gesture of the leaders’ and activists’ goodwill.

Kamruzzaman said that thousands of people were present at the rally—some offered flowers, some paper garlands, and some garlands made of cash. People gave garlands with notes of Tk 10, Tk 100, and Tk 500. Similarly, Nur Kasem suddenly came onto the stage and handed him a cheque for Tk 1 million.

Speaking about Nur Kasem, Kamruzzaman said, “This is his affection for the party and for me. I will accept his goodwill but return the cheque. This afternoon (Sunday), I have a programme where the cheque will be handed back to the activist.”

Earlier on yesterday afternoon, a rally was held at Sachna Bazar in Jamalganj upazila in support of BNP’s 31-point manifesto and the party symbol, the sheaf of paddy. The chief guest at the rally was Kamruzzaman Kamrul.

At one point, activists greeted him by garlanding him with flowers and cash. At that moment, an activist named Nur Kasem went up on the stage and handed Kamrul a cheque for election expenses. Kamrul took the cheque, saw that it was for Tk 1 million, and later showed it to the party leaders and activists present at the rally.

Besides Kamruzzaman, the aspirants for the BNP nomination in Sunamganj-1 include Salma Nozir, wife of the late Nozir Hossain, former MP and ex-president of the district unit BNP; Anisul Haque, former vice-president of the district BNP and former chairman of Tahirpur upazila parishad; Mahbubur Rahman, former joint organising secretary of the BNP’s central youth wing; UK-based BNP leader Hamidul Haque Afindi; and Abdul Motaleb Khan, former chairman of Dharmapasha upazila parishad and former vice-president of the district BNP.