BNP leaders and activists burst into celebration after the High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging the Election Commission’s gazette notification that declared Ishraque Hossain as the Mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
The verdict was delivered around noon on Thursday by a High Court bench comprising Justice Md Akram Hossain Chowdhury and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury.
Shortly after the news reached the BNP’s ongoing sit-in at the Kakrail mosque intersection, party activists erupted in joy. Chanting slogans such as “Just in—news confirmed, Ishraque is Mayor!” and “This moment marks the people’s victory!”, they expressed their excitement.
Following the celebratory chants, BNP activists brought out a procession marching from Kakrail mosque towards the Matsya Bhaban intersection.
The sit-in had been organized to demand the immediate swearing-in of Ishraque Hossain as DSCC Mayor, following the Election Commission’s official gazette.
The protest, led by BNP and its affiliated organizations, began at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, with participants occupying key roads around Kakrail and Matsya Bhaban throughout the day.
On Wednesday evening around 7:30 p.m., Ishraque Hossain joined the demonstrators and announced that the movement would continue until he formally assumed mayoral duties.
He also demanded the resignation of two advisers of the interim government—Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan and Mahfuz Alam—accusing them of interfering in the process. Ishraque stayed at the protest site with supporters until nearly midnight.
A segment of the demonstrators maintained their protest overnight, continuing their sit-in into Thursday in anticipation of the High Court’s ruling, which ultimately fueled further demonstrations of joy and renewed demands for Ishraque’s immediate swearing-in.
