BNP leaders to meet on further protests against jailing of Khaleda

BNP leaders will discuss further plans after two days of protests against the incarceration of party chief Khaleda Zia.

The meeting will be held at the chairperson’s offices in Gulshan on Saturday evening, said BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

“Members of the BNP Standing Committee, the vice chairman, members of the Advisory Council and the joint secretaries general will meet this evening,” he told bdnews24.com. “We will discuss the latest situation and what is to be done going forward.”

This is the first official meeting of BNP leaders since Khaleda Zia was jailed on Thursday.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Standing Committee members Khandker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Vice Chairman Mohammad Shahjahan had previously met privately.

Khaleda Zia’s son, Senior Vice Chairman Tarique Rahman, is serving as the acting chairman of the BNP since the jail term for Khaleda.

Tarique has also received 10 years in prison over the graft case that saw his mother sentenced to jaiu for five years.

Tarique, who is living in London, has also been sentenced to 10 years in prison in another case.

BNP leaders say he is providing directions from his home in the UK.

BNP scheduled protests for Friday and Saturday against the jailing of the party chief.

The BNP said it is holding peaceful protests instead of declaring a general strike.

BNP lawyers are preparing to appeal the verdict at the High Court on Sunday, but have to wait for a copy of the 600-page ruling.