Cultural affairs adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki today said this year`s Anondo Shobhajatra was not politically motivated.
"But in previous years, the Shobhajatra had been used on political purpose. A political group used it to suppress their opponents. This time, we have only targeted the Face of Fascism, because fascism is not a part of politics—it is the greatest evil force of all," he told reporters on Dhaka University campus this morning.
"Yes, there is politics -- but it`s the politics for Bangladesh. You`ll see the participation of all communities and reflections of different eras, from the Mughal to the Sultanate regimes," he said, adding "there is no typical, narrow-minded political element here."
Replying to another query, the adviser elaborated how the name of the procession was changed at different times, and said, "No incident of imposition has taken place here. Rather, imposition had taken place in the past."
"This year, the Faculty of Fine Arts (Charukola) has decided to use the name with which the Shobhajatra of the institution was originally started first," Farooki claimed.
"We may not be in this world 20-30 years from now, but this year will be remembered for a long time, as Bangladesh will continue on this path," he added.
