National elections should be held as soon as possible, according to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

Party leaders emphasized that authority ought to be swiftly passed to elected officials. They also demanded that fair national elections be held in three months and the establishment of an interim government.

They voiced these requests on Wednesday afternoon during a rally that was held in front of the BNP headquarters in Naya Paltan, Dhaka.

The protest was organized by the party one day after Nobel laureate Prof. Muhammad Yunus was suggested to lead the provisional administration.

It was nearly six years since BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia addressed the country. She virtually joined the protest in the afternoon and gave the leaders and activists of the party a motivational address.

She stated: “We must build a society of love and peace, not one of destruction and revenge.”

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir demanded three months of fair elections during the demonstration.

He said: “We will urge the President to ensure the administration performs its duties properly. At the same time, I request the quick formation of an interim government and the holding of fair elections within three months.”

Emphasizing vigilance, he added: “Everyone should be vigilant so that no one can steal our victory. We want to build a humanitarian state, a state of equality.”

There was a festive atmosphere in front of the party’s central office on the occasion of the first pre-announced rally by the BNP since the fall of the Awami government. From the morning, party leaders and activists began arriving in groups from different areas of the capital, shouting slogans against the recently departed Awami government.

As the day progressed, the crowd grew, with thousands of activists gathering in front of the central office. Many of them expressed confidence in their imminent victory, believing the BNP government would return to power through a neutral election. Leaders and workers of various levels, including central party leaders, participated in the rally.

Although the rally officially started around 3pm, a large number of leaders and activists had already gathered in the central office area beforehand. The Paltan area was filled with BNP leaders and workers, creating a massive public gathering from the Chief Justice’s residence to Arambagh via Naya Paltan-Fakirapul.

New posters were put up in the Naya Paltan area for the rally, including one referring to Khaleda Zia as the “Mother of Democracy.”

The rally was presided over by Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary general of the party, and the party’s acting chairman, Tarique Rahman, addressed the leaders and activists through video conferencing as well.

Selima Rahman, a member of the BNP National Standing Committee, said: “Tarique Rahman will return as a hero. You will implement this slogan in the country. To BNP leaders and workers, you will realize our dream of building the country with the youth.”

She expressed gratitude to BNP leaders and workers for their 16-year struggle against Sheikh Hasina, referring to her as a dictator and recognizing the sacrifices made by the youth.

Fakhrul condemned vandalism, looting, and arson, saying those involved are not agitators but enemies of the nation.

Tarique Rahman’s speech after nine-year ban

Since the fall of Awami League President Sheikh Hasina’s government on Monday, BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman’s statement has been circulating in the media. In 2015, the High Court of Bangladesh ordered a ban on disseminating or publishing any statements made by Tarique Rahman while he was on the run.

For over nine years, the media has been prohibited from broadcasting his speeches.

However, on Wednesday, he gave a speech as the chief guest at the BNP rally. In this virtual speech, he guided BNP leaders and workers on what to do in the changed situation and spoke about the interim government.

Tarique Rahman said national elections should be held as soon as possible to realize the revolution’s goals and that power should be transferred to elected representatives promptly.

He said: “The first step of the revolution, stained with the blood of thousands of martyrs, has only been successful through the fall of Sheikh Hasina. The ultimate goal of this bloody revolution by the students is a democratic Bangladesh without discrimination.”

BNP Publicity Secretary Sultan Salahuddin Tuku moderated the rally. The party’s standing committee members Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, and others also addressed the gathering.

The Intelligence Department (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police raided the BNP central office on the night of July 16 and locked the gate, labeling it a “Crime Scene.”

On July 19, some leaders and activists of Chhatra Dal and Juba Dal broke the lock and entered the office. Then, on July 20, BNP members locked the main gate again.

After hearing about Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, BNP leaders and workers unlocked the main gate and entered the office on Monday afternoon.