Pabna, July 1 (V7N) – Hasanul Islam Raja, Adviser to the Central Executive Committee of Jatiyatabadi Sangskritik Dal and a BNP nomination aspirant for the Pabna-3 constituency, has declared that he will only contest the upcoming national parliamentary election if nominated by Tarique Rahman, the party’s acting chairman. Speaking at a grassroots political gathering on Monday night, Raja emphasized his unwavering loyalty to Tarique Rahman's leadership.
 
“I am ready to serve whoever Tarique Rahman nominates for Pabna-3. We are loyal to his leadership. I wanted to contest in 2014, planned to run in 2018 but couldn’t, and didn’t participate in 2024 either. If Tarique Rahman nominates me this time, I will run. If not, I will wait until the day he does,” Raja said. “Because honor comes only from the Almighty.”
 
He made these remarks while addressing a courtyard meeting organized by local BNP units of wards 4, 5, 6, and 7 at the Bilchalan B.L. High School ground in Chatmohar upazila of Pabna.
 
Raja further stated that his political activism with the BNP from 2009 to 2018 cost him dearly. “After the January 5 elections, the government, using military force, seized my property in Rayerbazar, Dhaka—26 kathas of land including my house. They filed cases against me at Mohammadpur police station. In total, 126 kathas of land and properties were taken, now worth over Tk 10,000 crore in commercial value,” he said.
 
He expressed deep disappointment that during those difficult times, no leaders from Pabna District BNP or the Pabna-3 constituency stood beside him. “My house in Rayerbazar was occupied under the direction of Jahangir Kabir Nanak. In Mirpur, a two-story house on 4.5 kathas of land was seized by the late MP of Gabtoli, Aslamul Haque,” he alleged. “My only crime was that I supported the BNP—financially and politically—especially in tough times, distributing crores of taka among party workers. Yet I received no credit from local leaders.”
 
“I don’t believe in extortion, land grabbing, or corruption,” Raja stressed. “I am a soldier of Shaheed Ziaur Rahman’s ideology. I have never harmed a single BNP activist. I joined this party out of love and respect, not to fill my own pockets. Since 2008, I have opened my hands wide for the BNP, while many current BNP leaders in this constituency—who once had nothing—are now millionaires thriving on deceit and corruption.”
 
Raja also outlined his vision if nominated and elected, promising several development and reform initiatives. These include eliminating terrorism, corruption, extortion, and illegal land occupation; improving infrastructure such as roads and submersible pathways across fields and wetlands; enhancing education standards and learning environments; generating employment for the youth; expanding gas supply connections; and establishing an ICT park.
 
The meeting was presided over by Kitab Uddin Member, president of Ward 7 BNP, and moderated by Zahurul Islam Master, former joint secretary of Chatmohar Municipality BNP. Other speakers included former vice president of Chatmohar Municipality BNP Abdul Quddus Mollah, senior BNP leader Faiz-e-Elahi Bulu, former organizing secretary of Haripur Union BNP Yunus Ali Inu, Saiful Islam Master of Foiljana Union BNP, Jubo Dal leader Al Amin Talukder, Mathurapur Union Krishak Dal president Rezaul Karim Babu, BNP leaders Abdul Sattar Master and Ismail Hossain, as well as prominent businessmen Birendra Das and Sushankar Saha.
 
END/SRP/SMA/