Feud in Magura BNP intensifies as district committee dissolved

From L-R: Quazi Salimul Huq Kamal & Nitai Roy Chowdhury

A convening committee was formed with lawmaker from Magura-2 constituency Quazi Salimul Huq Kamal as its convener.

The district committee was dissolved at a meeting held in Dhaka in which party high-ups including secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan were present, party sources said here yesterday.

Quazi Kamal attended the meeting but former minister and BNP central executive committee member Nitai Roy Chowdhury, who hails from Magura, was absent, the sources said.

On the same night, a new committee of Magura district Jubo Dal, youth front of BNP, was formed in Dhaka with Alamgir Hossain as its president, Khan Aminur Rahman as general secretary and Habibur Rahman as organising secretary.

Last month, the district committee of BNP's student front Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) was also dissolved.

BNP insiders here said dissolution of the district committee is a 'victory' for Qiazi Kamal over Nitai Roy Chowdhury.

Seeking anonymity, many BNP leaders told this correspondent that Qiazi Kamal won the race against Nitai Roy in establishing supremacy in Magura BNP.

The party sources claimed that Quazi Kamal got the BNP and JCD committees dissolved as some of its front ranking leaders were working for his rival Nitai Roy.

The youth and student fronts were dissolved as district Jubo Dal convener Rezaul Islam and JCD president and secretary Nazmul Hasan Liton and Shahidul Islam Rupak took stand against Quazi Kamal and were supporting Nitai Roy. The district BNP secretary was also enjoying blessings of Nitai Roy, they claimed.

Supporters of Qiazi Kamal claimed that the committees were dissolved as their tenure ended.

But party men belonging to Nitai Roy's faction alleged that this was done to turn Magura BNP into a 'pocket organisation' of Kazi Kamal.

Talking to this correspondent, Nitai loyalist Ali Ahmed Biswas, who was secretary of the dissolved BNP committee, said, "Tenure of the committee had expired but its dissolution ahead of the election will be a blow to the party".

Neither Quazi Kamal nor Nitai Roy could not be contacted despite repeated attempts over cellphone.

Front ranking party leader Akter Hossain, a close aide to Qiazi Kamal said, "Party central leaders have dissolved the district committee to reshuffle and strengthen the party".

Magura district BNP is dogged by internal feud for long. The feud came in the open when rival factions brought out separate processions and held discussion meetings in the town on September 1 in observance of the party's founding anniversary.

Leaders and activists are divided into two groups--one led by Kazi Salimul Huq Kamal and Akter Hossain and the other by Nitai Roy Choudhury and Ali Ahmed Biswas.