If Khaleda joins BNP's 10 Dec rally, court will take steps: Home minister

If BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia attends the party's 10 December rally in Dhaka, court will take necessary steps, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Wednesday.

"Khaleda Zia is out of jail on condition, and if she joins the public rally, the court will take steps," the minister said while speaking at an annual training programme of Bangladesh Police Women Network in Dhaka's Rajarbagh area.

BNP received permission to hold their rally at Dhaka's Suhrawardy Udyan on 10 December and the government has allowed them to conduct it smoothly, the home minister said, adding, "If they initiate any kind of violence, it will be a big mistake."

BNP initially sought permission to hold the rally at either Suhrawardy Udyan or Manik Mia Avenue. They got permission to hold the event at Suhrawardy Udyan as Manik Mia Avenue, where the National Parliament is located, is a restricted area, said the minister.

"We told them that they must conduct their political activities as it is their political right, but they will not be allowed to create chaos and anarchy in the name of rally," said Asaduzzaman.

Earlier on 15 November, a BNP delegation met Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq and sought permission to hold their much-talked-about rally in front of the party's Nayapaltan central office in the capital on 10 December.

The DMP Commissioner, however, asked BNP to give the name of any other alternative venue.

As part of the move to continue the pace of its ongoing movement, BNP on 27 September announced a series of public rallies in 10 divisional cities to denounce the price hike of daily essentials and fuels, the death of five party men in previous police action in Bhola, Narayanganj, Munshiganj and Jashore, and to ensure the freedom of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.

The party has already arranged rallies in Chattogram, Mymensingh, Khulna, Rangpur, Barishal, Faridpur, and Sylhet braving various obstacles and transport strikes.

BNP will conclude the divisional rallies through a mass gathering in Dhaka city on 10 December, coinciding with International Human Rights day.

BNP has long been demanding that the next general election be held under a caretaker government, not under any political government – a demand rejected by the ruling Awami League.