Four newly appointed BNP Standing Committee members meet PM

Four newly appointed members of the BNP Standing Committee met Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at his office in the Bangladesh Secretariat on Tuesday.

The four leaders – Md Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Md Aman Ullah Aman, Farhad Halim and Ismail Zabihullah – met the prime minister this evening, said Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Jahidul Islam Rony.

BNP Standing Committee member and Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed was present on the occasion.

Earlier in the morning, the four newly appointed leaders paid tribute to the memory of BNP founder and former president Ziaur Rahman and former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia by placing wreaths at their graves in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.

On 15 August, BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman nominated the four leaders as members of the party’s Standing Committee.

In a press release, the BNP said the four leaders had been appointed to the Standing Committee in line with a party decision to strengthen the party’s organisational dynamism.

The party expressed hope that the four leaders would contribute to important decisions in favour of the party and the people through their thoughtful advice, intellect and wisdom in the party’s highest policy-making forum.

The BNP’s last national council was held on 19 March 2016, following which the Standing Committee was reconstituted. 

Several positions subsequently became vacant due to deaths, resignations and other reasons, and the party appointed new members to some of those positions at different times.

This time, four members have been added to the committee at the same time.

The BNP’s 19-member Standing Committee previously had 13 members: Tarique Rahman, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Rafiqul Islam Miah, Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Salahuddin Ahmed, Selima Rahman, Iqbal Hassan Mahmood Tuku and AZM Zahid Hossain.

Mirza Fakhrul has been nominated by the BNP as its candidate for the presidency. He is expected to resign from his party position following the presidential election scheduled for 20 August.

Following the appointment of the four new members, the current number of Standing Committee members stands at 17.