Staff Correspondent The 12th National Parliament will go into its second session on Thursday. The session will begin at 5pm. On April 15, President Mohammed Shahabuddin summoned the 2nd session of the 12th parliament exercising the power bestowed upon him as per Clause (1) of Article 72 of the Constitution. Prior to the sitting, National Parliament Business Advisory Committee will hold a meeting to take decision on the proceedings and duration of the session. The first session of the current parliament was prorogued on March 5.

Staff Correspondent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has invited the Bangladesh Awami League to observe the overall preparation and campaign taken for the national elections in India. Awami League Deputy Office Secretary Sayem Khan disclosed the information to the media through a press release on Wednesday. According to the press release, national elections are being held in seven phases in different provinces of India. The ruling BJP has invited some foreign political parties to show their overall preparation and campaign in this election. It has invited the only Awami League from Bangladesh, the press release read. It is significant that the ruling party of India invited only Awami League among the political parties of Bangladesh, it added. India, which has the world`s largest democracy, is confident in Bangladesh Awami League as well as Sheikh Hasina`s leadership and thus, considers Awami League as one of the most important organizations in South Asia and their true friends. In the invitation letter sent to Bangladesh Awami League, they have requested to send a representative from Awami League to observe BJP`s election preparations and campaign. In view of this invitation, Awami League Information and Research Secretary and Member of Parliament Salim Mahmud has been nominated as a representative by Awami League president to visit India. The five-day tour will end on May 5. During this visit, the Awami League representative will meet senior BJP leaders.

Staff Correspondent Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader has commented that BNP is responsible for its own downfall. Awami League does not want to break the BNP, said the Awami League leader, adding that BNP itself is responsible for breaking the party. "We do not want to destroy the BNP, nor do we desire their disintegration. They will be responsible for their own collapse. With so many enemies within, there is no need for external enemies to destroy the BNP," he said while addressing an event in Dhaka on Wednesday marking May Day. Mentioning that there are many internal issues within BNP, Obaidul Quader said: "There is no unity among their leaders. Anyone they dislike is called an agent of the government. Leaders blame each other and fight amongst themselves." Obaidul Quader also said that the stain of worker`s blood is in BNP`s hands. "They (BNP leaders) do not have the strength of the waging movement. Movement requires people. People are not with them. The blood stains of August 15 and August 21 are in their hands. The stain of labourer`s blood is in their hands. If they come back to power, they will make a pool of blood," he said. Quader said the people of this country will not forgive those who had closed the Adamjee Jute Mills. While Sheikh Hasina is a worker-friendly prime minister as he raised minimum wages of labourers to Tk12,500. Calling upon the workers to be united, Quader said: " What the leader (Sheikh Hasina) has done, will do more in the future (for the betterment of the workers). Do not create enmity by quarreling among yourselves". An evil force, he said, is hatching a conspiracy to destroy the garment industry by instigating its workers. "Everyone should be united to face the conspiracy in the greater interest of the nation," he said.

Staff Correspondent BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday urged everyone, regardless of their political affiliations, to initiate a new movement aimed at reclaiming the people`s rights and eliminating widespread corruption. Speaking at a rally in Nayapaltan, the BNP leader criticized the government`s economic policies. "The government has established a reign of looting by destroying banks and all other economic institutions and capturing all businesses. They have grabbed all the businesses of people belonging to the opposition parties, even in the rural areas,” he said. Addressing the crowd before the rally, the BNP leader highlighted the need for unity among people from various sectors to restore their rights. "We must all come together. On this May Day, I urge all political parties and ideological organizations, particularly workers` unions, to be united...let’s wage a movement to achieve our desired goal of getting back our voting and democratic rights and the rights of people. This should be our pledge on this May Day,” he said. The rally, organized by the Bangladesh Jatioatabadi Shramik Dal, an associate body of the BNP, was held to mark May Day. Fakhrul also accused the government of attempting to impose a one-party rule, diverging from past methods. “A unilateral governance system is being established in the country. Their tactics are different this time. They do not want to establish Baksal now passing a bill in the parliament as before. They want to do it by destroying all democratic institutions under the guise of democracy.” He reaffirmed the opposition’s commitment to democracy and expressed determination to continue the struggle. "We must always remember one thing, that we have never been defeated in the past, and we will not be defeated in the future as well. Our goal is to establish democracy and restore the voting rights of people in Bangladesh. We are ready to make more sacrifices to this end,” he added. The BNP leader lamented that May Day is being observed at a time when the hardworking people of Bangladesh are bereft of their basic rights under what he termed a “demonic regime.” The rally started in the afternoon with cultural performances on a makeshift stage built with trucks in front of the party`s headquarters, energizing leaders and workers despite the high temperatures. As the event unfolded, traffic in the Nayapaltan area slowed, with one side of the road closed. Hundreds of BNP leaders and activists had gathered since noon, arriving in small processions to participate in the rally.

Staff Correspondent Detained Milton Samadder, founder of the charity organization "Child and Old Age Care", will be interrogated regarding allegations of irregularities against the organization. Dhaka Metropolitan Police`s Detective Branch (DB) chief Additional Commissioner Harun-or-Rashid said this to journalists during a press briefing at the DB office hours after detaining Milton on Wednesday. Milton`s detention follows a storm of criticism and discussion triggered by an April investigative report published in a daily newspaper. "Several media interviews quote Milton Samadder claiming he has an unauthorized operation theatre (OT). We will quiz him on why he set up an OT without any license and proper authorization," said Harun. He further said: "Particularly, there are allegations against him involving human trafficking and the sale of organs of children and the elderly. We will investigate these allegations seriously. We will also examine whether the donations he received were properly utilized, and look into the complaints of abuse by the guardians of children and the elderly who were under the care of his shelter home." Regarding the claim that he conducted 900 burials and forged doctor`s signatures on death certificates, Harun said: "We will investigate these allegations in detail." The DB chief added: "We have received numerous complaints against Milton. He claimed to have two ashrams. In his Savar ashram, he said there were 500 to 700 people, but we found only 20 to 30 people there. We have brought him in, and some complainants will file cases. We will interrogate him on remand to determine how many people went to him for treatment and how many died. We will also investigate whether he was involved in selling kidneys through the operation theatre in his ashram." A team of DB detained Milton Samadder from Mirpur area in the capital. He was detained around 7:30pm. The process to file case against Milton is underway, said the DB chief. On April 25, various fraud allegations against Milton Samaddar surfaced in a national daily. It was reported that more than 16 mobile banking numbers and three bank accounts received about Tk10,00,000 monthly. Many people also donated directly to his institution. According to allegations, he misused these funds. Allegations include the illegal trade of human organs, specifically pointing to the cutting and selling of kidneys. The revelations led to individuals speaking out and a flurry of discussions on social media, culminating in Samadder`s detainment. Milton Samaddar has also received three national awards for his humanitarian work.