If BNP comes to power, the division will be named Cumilla: Mirza Fakhrul

  • Staff Correspondent, Barta24.com
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photo: Collected

photo: Collected

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said that if BNP comes to power, the division will be named after Cumilla and not after any river.

He said this in response to a question of the journalists on Saturday (August 31), after distributing relief to the flood victims in Lalmai, Nangalkot and Sadar South Upazila areas of Cumilla at night, BNP Chairperson's adviser and former MP Md. Monirul Haque Chowdhury’s residence.

বিজ্ঞাপন

In the regular meeting of the cabinet on January 26, 2015, Sheikh Hasina directed an experiment on whether Chattogram division can be broken into separate divisions with Cumilla and Noakhali regions. On March 4 of that year, during the question and answer session in Parliament, Sheikh Hasina promised to divide Cumilla. On May 25 of the same year, Sheikh Hasina announced the division of Cumilla at the opening ceremony of poet Kazi Nazrul's birth anniversary at the national level at Cumilla Town Hall. But in the ECNEC meeting held on February 14, 2017, the then Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal announced the decision to name the division as 'Mainamati' instead of Cumilla. A protest rally was held in Cumilla city. After that the name of the division as Mainamati and Meghna is heard at various times.

The issue of making 'Meghna' division with five districts of greater Faridpur and three of greater Cumilla and three of Noakhali was finalized, but the issue was suppressed due to the financial crisis during the Corona pandemic. The issue of the division was supposed to be finalized in the NICAR meeting in November 2022, but it was not discussed at that time. However, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina also had objections to the division called 'Cumilla'. On October 21, 2021, the then prime minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the nine-story state-of-the-art building of Cumilla metropolis Awami League in a video conference. On that occasion, AKM Bahauddin, the then Member of Parliament, raised the demand of changing the name of the division to Cumilla. However, the Prime Minister immediately rejected it. That day, Sheikh Hasina said, 'I have taken a decision regarding the division. I will make two divisions, named after my two rivers. One Padma, one Meghna. I want to make two divisions under these two names.' Then MP A. K. M. Bahauddin said, 'in the name of Cumilla'. In response, Sheikh Hasina said, "I will not name you". Then Bahauddin said, 'No you, in the name of Cumilla. All the people of Cumilla want it. In response, Sheikh Hasina said, "I will not give it in the name of Cumilla because, your name is associated with Moshtaq's name. For that I will not give.”