BNP plans to hold nationwide roadshow, Dhaka mass rally on Victory Day

The campaign will begin from Chattogram’s historic Kalurghat radio centre and travel through every division

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) will launch a nationwide “Victory Torch Roadshow”, culminating in a grand rally in Dhaka on Dec 16.

Senior leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir made the announcement at the chairperson’s Gulshan office on Saturday.

The event begins on Dec 1 at Chattogram’s Kalurghat radio centre, the historic site from which Major Ziaur Rahman declared Bangladesh’s independence in March 1971, according to Fakhrul.

From there, the torch will travel to Chattogram’s Biplob Udyan, carried by a 1971 Liberation War veteran and a July Uprising activist, symbolising continuity between past and present struggles, he added.

Fakhrul said the roadshow will then progress sequentially through Cumilla, Sylhet, Mymensingh, Bogura, Rangpur, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barishal, and Faridpur.

Activities will include visits to historically significant sites, performances of the national anthem and Liberation War songs, cultural shows by JASAS, and screenings of documentaries.

Selected speeches from BNP founder late president Ziaur Rahman, Chairperson Khaleda Zia, and Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman will also be broadcast to participants.

The final march will reach Dhaka on Dec 16, concluding at Manik Mia Avenue with a grand rally.

Fakhrul said, during the event, the BNP will present its 31-point plan for building a safe, prosperous, and democratic Bangladesh, accompanied by the party theme song, “Shobar Age Bangladesh”.

Fakhrul emphasised that just as 1971 represented a struggle for independence, 2024 is a continuation of the fight to safeguard the country and its citizens’ freedoms.