Sultan Mansur tells parliament he was in ‘political prison for 18 years’

Sultan Muhammed Mansur Ahmed has said he had been in a “political prison” since he had lost his parliament berth 18 years ago after he took oath as an MP in defiance of the Jatiya Oikya Front alliance’s decision.

The Gono Forum expelled him from the party and also the opposition alliance hours after he was sworn in on Thursday.

Later in the evening, Sultan joined parliament session as the representative of Moulvibazar-2 constituency he won in the Dec 30 polls with the BNP’s paddy sheaf symbol.

The former Awami League leader, who had been elected MP on the ruling party’s ticket in 1996, has now been seated on the second row for the opposition MPs.         

“I was supposed to sit there (in the treasury bench). That’s the coalition I did politics for. I had the opportunity to come to this parliament 18 years ago,” he said.

“But the irony is that Allah has (put me here), maybe for losing my rhythm in politics.

“I was in a political prison for the past 18 years though I was not an MP or in this parliament,” the politician said.

A former vice-president of Dhaka University Central Students’ Union or DUCSU and president of Bangladesh Chhatra League, Sultan Mansur had risen as high as to the position of organising secretary in the Awami League.

He joined the Gono Forum led by Dr Kamal Hossain after facing the wrath of the Awami League leadership for seeking reforms during the 2007-08 military-controlled caretaker government.

The Awami League has formed government for the third consecutive term after winning 258 constituencies while the Oikya Front secured eight.

The alliance rejected the results of the polls and said their candidates, who won the elections, would not take oath as MPs.

Later, Mansur and Mukabbir Khan of the Gono Forum wrote to the speaker for taking oath on Thursday.

Mukabbir on Wednesday said he would take oath after discussions with the party leadership.

The Gono Forum said it may allow Mukabbir to take oath for the sake of anti-government movement in and outside parliament.