Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Secretary General of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), said on Saturday (September 20) that despite years of crackdowns and political pressure, his party has survived and remains prepared to lead the country if given the chance in the next elections.

Speaking at the BNP’s triennial district council in Kishoreganj, Mirza Fakhrul said, “So much of what is good in this country has come from the BNP. The BNP is like the phoenix. Conspiracies failed, and those behind them have fled instead.”

He urged party members to seize what he called a historic opportunity created by the recent student-led uprising and the approaching national elections. “The BNP is ready,” he said.

He contrasted BNP founder Ziaur Rahman’s record on press freedom with that of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, saying, “Shaheed Zia established multiparty democracy and ensured media freedom. Sheikh Mujib shut down all but four newspapers. Young people need to know this history.”

The event was chaired by Kishoreganj district BNP president Md Shariful Alam and attended by senior BNP leaders, including the BNP Chairperson’s adviser Abdus Salam, Joint Secretaries Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel and Syed Emran Saleh Prince, treasurer M Rashiduzzaman Millat, and organizing secretaries Shah Mohammad Warez Ali and Abu Wahab Akanda.