Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Ishraque Hossain on Tuesday warned of taking the protest to the streets if the interim government did not administer his swearing-in as Dhaka South City Corporation mayor soon.
Addressing the sit-in by his supporters at Nagar Bhaban, the headquarters of the DSCC, he said, 鈥業f you (the government) think you can keep ignoring this protest, this movement will move from Nagar Bhaban to the streets.鈥�
With a banner carrying words 鈥榟onourable mayor鈥� on it,聽 Ishraque, meanwhile, held a meeting with DSCC ward secretaries, administrative officers and former BNP-led ward councillors at Nagar Bhaban for the second consecutive day to continue to provide the civic services.聽
Ishraque said that he would have taken the DSCC mayor鈥檚 chair by now had the oath-taking not been mandatory by the Local Government Act.
He called on the chief adviser Muhammad Yunus to resolve this issue.
He also referred to a statement in which he criticised Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain for telling a media outlet on June 16 that the oath could not be administered because the gazette鈥檚 validity had expired while the matter was under consideration.
鈥楾hat means that after a gazette is published in the winner鈥檚 name, any defeated candidate鈥攐r any citizen incited by someone like Asif Mahmud鈥攃an file a writ petition with the High Court Division to block the oath-taking. And if that petition remains unresolved for 30 days and the 30-day period mentioned in the gazette expires, no public representative will have the opportunity to take oath in the future,鈥� he said.
He alleged that the local government adviser was trying to 鈥榞ain financial and political benefits by appointing an administrator of his choice鈥�.
Earlier, with a banner carrying words 鈥榟onourable mayor鈥� on it, Ishraque held a meeting with the DSCC waste management staff at Nagar Bhaban on Monday.
Since May 15, civic services at Nagar Bhaban and other zonal offices have remained halted.
The EC on April 27 this year issued a gazette declaring Ishraque as the DSCC mayor after the Election Tribunal announced him as mayor on March 27.
But the EC gazette was challenged by Supreme Court lawyer Mamunur Rashid, who filed a writ against the notification on May 14.聽
Later, the court cleared the way for his mayoral oath, but the Local Government Division has yet to take any steps in this regard.
After the fall of the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024, the interim government declared the DSCC mayoral office vacant on August 19.
