Khaleda Zia attends Armed Forces Day reception at Senakunja

BNP Chairperson and former prime minister Khaleda Zia attended the Armed Forces Day reception at Senakunja in Dhaka Cantonment on Friday afternoon.

She arrived at Senakunja around 4:00PM, where Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman and senior Armed Forces officials welcomed her.

According to BNP Standing Committee member and her personal physician Prof AZM Zahid Hossain, Khaleda left her Gulshan residence, Firoza, at 3:50PM.

Party sources said the BNP chief, now 81 and suffering from multiple health issues, was cleared by her medical board to join the event after an assessment of her condition.

Khaleda travelled in the same vehicle with Syeda Shamila Rahman Sithi, wife of her late son Arafat Rahman Koko.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Prof Zahid Hossain were part of her motorcade.

BNP Media Cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan said several Standing Committee members; Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Salahuddin Ahmed, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku and Hafizuddin Ahmed, were also present at the reception.

The Armed Forces Division, under the Office of the Chief Adviser, had earlier issued formal invitations to the BNP chairperson, Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, Secretary General and other senior leaders for the occasion.

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus attended the programme as the chief guest.

Armed Forces Day is being observed on Friday with various events commemorating the formation of Bangladesh’s Army, Navy and Air Force during the Liberation War of 1971.

Khaleda Zia also took part in last year’s reception at Senakunja, marking her first attendance at the event in 12 years.