Hannan Masud’s Remarks on PM Trigger Uproar in Parliament
Collected Photo
Tensions erupted in the National Parliament on Sunday following a statement made by Noakhali-6 MP and NCP leader Abdul Hannan Masud regarding Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
In his speech in Parliament, Hannan Masud said, “Our Prime Minister is not here today. In various speeches, he goes and spreads false information, saying the opposition holds rallies over rising liquor and cigarette prices. When the Prime Minister makes such false statements, we are deeply disappointed.”
MPs of the ruling party protested loudly in response, creating uproar in the House.
Hannan Masud further alleged that when opposition members raise issues in Parliament regarding loans or the takeover of Islami Bank, the Prime Minister dismisses them by saying they are all landlords who did not take loans. He claimed such remarks effectively encourage loan defaulters.
Following his speech, BNP MP Zainal Abdin Faruk stood on a point of order and demanded that the remarks be expunged, saying they did not want any false statements or derogatory comments about the House leader.
Later, Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam took the floor. Referring to Faruk, he said that it is not enough to broadly claim a statement is false; specific factual inaccuracies must be identified.
Nahid Islam said the Prime Minister can make mistakes and that the opposition has the right to criticize the Prime Minister’s statements. He added that while they respect the Prime Minister, it does not mean no criticism can be made, stressing that Bangladesh is moving toward democracy and not back toward authoritarianism.
In response, Local Government Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the Opposition Chief Whip’s remarks were incorrect. He insisted that the opposition MP had clearly stated that the prime minister had made false statements.
As opposition members created further uproar, he said they should be allowed to speak, accusing them of exhibiting ‘fascist behavior’ while insisting that they had previously spoken without interruption.
Mirza Fakhrul also demanded that the disputed portions of Hannan Masud’s speech be expunged.
Meanwhile, tensions escalated between BNP and Jamaat members during the proceedings. When Hannan Masud attempted to speak again, the Deputy Speaker tried to stop him.
At one point, the Deputy Speaker told him, “Standing up whenever you wish is not the parliamentary procedure. Please sit down. This is not Shahbagh Square; this is the National Parliament.”
Following this, Opposition Leader Shafiqur Rahman said Hannan Masud had made remarks about the House leader and urged that no external matters be brought into Parliament or allowed for expunging or debate.
He called for restraint, saying external issues should be addressed outside Parliament, while parliamentary matters should be resolved inside it. He warned that getting into disputes over truth and falsehood could become embarrassing for all.
Deputy Speaker Kaiser Kamal later said that a decision on the matter would be taken after proper review and analysis.
