NCP leaders yet to leave Cox's Bazar hotel

Senior leaders of the National Citizen Party (NCP), who are currently on a visit to Cox's Bazar, have not yet checked out of their hotel.

According to hotel sources, it was confirmed that four NCP leaders are currently staying at the hotel, while Sarjis left earlier in the day for a tour to Bandarban.

As of today (7 August), 5:45pm, the leaders were still staying at the Prasad Paradise Hotel, confirmed Yakub Ali, general manager of the hotel.

He said, "The NCP leaders had bookings until 12pm. Two of them went out for sightseeing in the morning and haven't returned yet. The rest are still at the hotel."

The NCP leaders initially stayed one night at the Sea Pearl Hotel in Inani, Ukhiya, before relocating to the Prasad Paradise Hotel near Sugandha Point on the Cox's Bazar beach.

Yesterday (6 August) at around 12:45pm, the group checked out of Sea Pearl Hotel and arrived at Kolatoli in Cox's Bazar town by 2pm. They had lunch at a restaurant named Shalik and later checked into Prasad Paradise Hotel at 3pm.

Meanwhile, NCP Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari and Chief Organiser (South) Hasnat Abdullah have formally responded to the show-cause notices issued by the party, offering explanations for their 5 August Cox's Bazar visit that drew widespread criticism.

In his written reply sent to the party convener and member secretary today (7 August), Nasir stated, "Sitting on the shore of the ocean, I wanted to think deeply about the mass uprising, the citizens' committee, the structure of NCP, the future Constituent Assembly, and the outline of a new democratic constitution.

"I do not see this as wrongdoing, but rather as a responsible and reflective exercise expected of a political activist."

In a separate explanation, Hasnat Abdullah said, "On the evening of 4 August, I came to know that many of the injured and key leaders of the July Uprising had been entirely excluded from the July Declaration event. To me, this was not only a political misstep but also a moral failure. As a result, I made a personal decision to not participate at the event.

"I saw no reason to attend a gathering where division was prioritised over unity, and where the voices of a select few were elevated above those of the martyrs and the wounded," Hasnat added.

Yesterday (6 August), NCP served show-cause notices on the party's five top leaders over their trips to Cox's Bazar, avoiding the July mass uprising anniversary programmes in the capital.

Those who have been served notices are— the NCP's Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari, Chief Organiser (North) Sarjis Alam, Chief Organiser (South) Hasnat Abdullah, Senior Joint Member Secretary Tasnim Jara, and her husband Khaled Saifullah, who is also a joint convener of the party.