Biplobi Chhatra Parishad says president shouldn’t visit Shaheed Minar on 21 February
The student platform made the call yesterday afternoon (19 February), during a sit-in protest at the Anti-terrorism Raju Memorial Sculpture at the TSC intersection on the Dhaka University campus, according to a press release
Biplobi Chhatra Parishad has called on President Mohammed Shahabuddin Chuppu not to visit the Central Shaheed Minar on the first hour of 21 February to pay respects to the martyrs of the 1952 Language Movement, citing his silence during the mass killings in July and August last year.
The student platform made the call yesterday afternoon (19 February), during a sit-in protest at the Anti-terrorism Raju Memorial Sculpture at the TSC intersection on the Dhaka University campus, according to a press release.
"We lost over 2,000 of our brothers and sisters in July and August, yet President Mohammed Shahabuddin Chuppu remained silent during that time. It is also no secret that he was made president by the illegal MPs elected through Hasina's unlawful election," said Abdul Wahid, convener of the Biplobi Chhatra Parishad.
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"One by one, Hasina fled, parliament was dissolved, and her MPs went into hiding. Yet, Shahabuddin Chuppu remains in office. The students and masses have demanded his resignation, but he refuses to step down. However, the people have not accepted him," he added.
"We want to make it clear that the public does not want to see Shahabuddin Chuppu in any public space. He should remain within the four walls of Bangabhaban and reflect on his role in July. Now that all fascists have fallen, he should realise the futility of clinging to power. We hope he understands the urgency of stepping down," Wahid said.
He continued, "Our demand is clear — fascist Hasina's President Mohammed Shahabuddin Chuppu must not set foot on the Dhaka University campus, the birthplace of the July Revolution. He must not visit the Central Shaheed Minar in the first hour of Ekushey February."
Biplobi Chhatra Parishad started a hunger strike and a sit-in protest at the base of the Raju Memorial Sculpture on 13 February, demanding a ban on the Awami League and its allied political parties.
On 16 February, the family of July martyr Rana Talukder from Jatrabari expressed solidarity with the programme, urging demonstrators to continue until the Awami League is banned.
Responding to this appeal, the hunger strike was called off, and a continuous sit-in was announced.
