The fluttering red and green never fails to inspire pride and joy.
The interim government is re-verifying the background of 100 individuals who passed the 41st Bangladesh Civil Service examinations and were recommended for police cadre jobs.
With an almost decimated opposition and farcical elections, a party nomination from the ruling Awami League was as good as a seat in the parliament.
The government on around a dozen occasions has backtracked on its decisions during its two months in office, casting doubts about its resolve.
Durga Puja, an annual Hindu festival, celebrates the divine force “Shakti” embodied in Goddess Durga. This year, Mahalaya falls on 2 October, marking the start of Devi Paksha. Durga arrives on 3 October by palanquin, considered inauspicious, and departs on 12 October by horse.
An overarching sense of frustration, apprehension, and opportunism prevails over the police force, rendering it virtually dysfunctional.
The vacuum in the wake of the Awami League’s departure from the political arena and the BNP’s impending reemergence as number one are leading other parties to peel away from these major players and seek to make their own spheres of alliance.
The BNP has formed six committees to formulate the party’s reform proposals in line with its 31-point outline aimed at reforming the constitution and state system and ensuring economic emancipation, said party sources.
Star cricketer Shakib Al Hasan is set to start a new career in politics as he got the ruling Awami League’s ticket to run for parliament from Magura-1 constituency.
The BNP appears to be in for even tougher times in the next few weeks with the government going all out to make sure the party does not gain momentum in its oust-the-government movement.
Former Chhatra League president Rezwanul Haque Chowdhury Shovon, who was removed from his post in 2019 for controversial activities, has been picked as the Awami League nominee for Kurigram-1.
In many constituencies, incumbent and former lawmakers of the Awami League treat their seats with a dynastic perspective.
Awami League nomination seekers are in a race among themselves as on average 11 people are vying to get the party ticket in each constituency.
As the BNP and its like-minded parties intensify their street agitation, the government prepares to go for a stricter crackdown on the opposition activists to quash the anti-government movement.
The Election Commission’s move to hold dialogue over preparations for the upcoming general election appears doomed to fall flat, as the BNP and its allies won’t take part in it and the issue of polls-time government remains unresolved, say political analysts.
The way the events unfolded on Saturday has given the Awami League rank and file a confidence boost, claim leaders of the ruling party.
Police might give the BNP permission to hold the grand rally at its desired Nayapaltan venue at the last moment, but opposition activists will not be allowed anywhere else on the streets.
The Awami League is fully prepared to prevent the BNP from resorting to violence centring the October 28 rally, ruling party leaders said.
