In response to the outgoing Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique's call to keep the judiciary's free from politics, BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury questioned the timing of advocating such principles as one departs from office.
"Did he forget this principle when he first assumed office and only remembered it as he was leaving? All injustices will be subjected to trials," said Khasru while addressing a brief rally in front of the party office in Nayapaltan on Friday (1 September) ahead of a procession set out to celebrate BNP's 45th founding anniversary.
During a farewell event marking his final working day, the Chief Justice stressed the importance of safeguarding the judiciary from external influence, stating, "Without freedom from interference, the judiciary cannot function independently."
Another BNP Standing Committee Member, Dr Moin Khan, asserted, "No autocrat could sustain power through anarchy and repression, and neither would the Awami League government."
Leaders and activists of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) joined the rally after Jummah prayers to celebrate the party's 45th founding anniversary.
BNP partymen gathered at Nayapaltan in processions while chanting slogans and holding festoons and banners.
Meanwhile, law enforcement forces have been deployed to combat any untoward situation.
On 1 September 1978, late president Ziaur Rahman founded the party with a 19-point programme to build a self-reliant Bangladesh.
BNP and its associate bodies have taken up various programmes, including rallies and discussions across the country, to mark the day.
Earlier in the day, the party members paid floral tributes to Ziaur Rahman's grave.
At around 11 o'clock today, leaders and activists of all levels, including the party's policy makers, paid their respects at Ziaur Rahman's grave in the capital's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.
BNP Standing Committee members Abdul Moin Khan, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Vice Chairmans Shahjahan Omar Bir Uttam, Ahmed Azam Khan, Senior Joint Secretary General Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Advisor to Chairperson Aman Ullah Aman, Abdus Salam were present among others.
A large number of leaders and activists of BNP and various affiliated organisations gathered there since morning.
In its 44-year journey, BNP had been in power four times and on the opposition bench twice. BNP has been out of power for nearly 16 years since military backed caretaker government took power on 11 January 2007.
BNP acting Chairman Tarique Rahman and Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, in separate messages, congratulated the people of the country, party leaders, workers, activists and well-wishers on the occasion.
