The BNP is holding a rally blocking the road in front of the National Press Club in the capital demanding the unconditional release of party chairperson Khaleda Zia as well as sending her abroad to ensure advanced medical treatment.
There was a pre-announcement to hold the rally from 10 am on Sunday. However, the rally started before the stipulated time. Dhaka Metropolitan South and North units of the party organised the rally.
BNP leaders and activists started coming in front of the press club with processions from different areas of the capital at 9 am, onlookers said.
The road in front of the press club was filled to the brim with BNP leaders and activists around 10:15 am. At one stage the traffic on one side of the road in front of the press club was stopped. As a result, the vehicles plying on this road are moving in another direction.
A large number of police personnel have been deployed around the rally.
All entrances to the National Press Club have been closed. No one except the journalist is allowed to enter the press club.
BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will address the rally as the chief guest
Khaleda Zia fell ill late last Friday night. She was admitted to Evercare Hospital. A stent (ring) has been placed in his artery after an angiogram.
Speaking at a press conference at the BNP chairperson's political office in Gulshan on Saturday afternoon, Mirza Fakhrul said Khaleda Zia had suffered a 'mild heart attack'. After being admitted to the hospital for angiogram, it was found that Khaleda Zia has 99 percent blocks in the main blood vessel of her heart. Later the ring was successfully installed there.
The BNP secretary general said that Khaleda Zia has got temporary relief from her heart problem due to wearing the ring. He requested the government to make arrangements to send Khaleda Zia abroad for better treatment.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said yesterday that if Khaleda Zia had to go abroad, she would have to go to the legal process and court again.
After being infected with the coronavirus in April last year, Khaleda Zia was admitted to five private hospitals, including Evercare. Earlier on April 8, she was taken to the same hospital for regular health check-ups.
Khaleda Zia was sent to jail on 8 February 2018 after being convicted in a corruption case. She was temporarily released on March 25, 2020, after an outbreak of coronavirus in the country.
After being admitted to Evercare Hospital in 2021, physicians said that Khaleda Zia was suffering from bleeding in the digestive tract and liver cirrhosis. Besides, Khaleda Zia has been suffering from various complications including arthritis and diabetes for a long time.
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