BNP secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday wished to send sweetmeats for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for what he said raising his popularity by criticising him at a rally in his home district Thakurgaon.

‘I’ll send sweetmeats to the Prime Minister as she’s given me a great favour and increased my votes (through her remarks about me),’ a smiling BNP secretary general told reporters at an informal discussion before the party’s press conference at its Nayapaltan central office, reports the UNB.

BNP’s two other standing committee members who were present there also joined the discussion saying they are jealous as the Prime Minister only ‘promoted’ Fakhrul.

Speaking at a rally in Thakurgaon on Thursday, Hasina came down hard on Fakhrul and said he was spreading falsehood every day. ‘There should be a limit to spreading falsehood. Allah will also be displeased if anyone spreads falsehood all day long.’

The PM said Fakhrul was the state minister for the civil aviation during the BNP regime from 2001 to 2006 when he destroyed Biman. ‘They can only destroy but can’t create anything. They can plunder people’s property but can’t give them anything. He (Fakhrul) is a man of your neighbourhood, but he shut down Saidpur Airport in Nilphamari when he was the state minister.’

Referring to Sheikh Hasina’s remarks, Fakhrul said journalists had sought his comment after the PM’s speech, but he declined to do that. ‘Because I know it’s her habit to talk like that.’

Then, BNP standing committee member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said, ‘Reaction can be given to political remarks. But how will you respond to abusive words?’ 

He also mocked whether Fakhrul has any underhand dealing with the Prime Minister as she only talked about him to increase his popularity. 

Another BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said, ‘We all are jealous that the way the Prime Minister promoted him (Fakhrul).’

Though BNP standing committee member Moudud Ahmed did not say anything there, he later at a discussion programme at the Jatiya Press Club said, ‘The Prime Minister told a rally at Thakurgaon that our secretary general often tells lies. Actually, it went his favour and his vote has got increased greatly. We want her to continue to make such comments as people know the fact.’

Even the Prime Minister, he said, verbally attacked him for six times in parliament. ‘Whether our political standing is similar to you? How do you talk about insignificant persons like me and our secretary general being a Prime Minister?

Moudud said the Prime Minister may consider the positions of Fakhrul and other senior BNP leaders are similar to her as she knows it very well that she was not elected with people’s vote. ‘We want her to make such remarks every day against us as it’ll only help increase our votes.’

He said no one outside the world can understand what is lie unless visiting Bangladesh. ‘Falsehood is now not only there in the country’s highest level, but also in the judiciary. Now falsehood is publicised as truth while truth as falsehood here.’