Reza Kibria, the founding convener of Gono Odhikar Parishad and son of late former Finance Minister Shah A M S Kibria, has officially joined the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
He formally joined the party on Monday (December 1) at the political office of BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia in Gulshan, Dhaka.
The joining ceremony was attended by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Standing Committee Member Salahuddin Ahmed.
Welcoming the new member, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, “We are extremely happy and proud that Reza Kibria has come and joined our party today. On behalf of our party’s Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, I welcome him to our team. We believe Reza Kibria can play a vital role in fulfilling the BNP’s 31-point demand.”
Explaining his decision to join the party, Reza Kibria highlighted the BNP’s historic role, stating, “I have not seen an example in the history of any other country where a single party has protected multi-party democracy twice. These reasons attracted me to the BNP, and Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman is my idol. I believe that under the leadership of the BNP, the country’s new generation will be able to fulfill all their dreams.”
A Tumultuous Political Journey
Reza Kibria’s political career has been marked by several shifts. Notably, in the 2018 11th National Parliament Election, he contested from the Habiganj-1 constituency with the paddy sheaf symbol as a candidate of the Jatiya Oikya Front, an alliance partnered with the BNP.
Prior to the 2018 election, he had joined the Gono Forum and later became its General Secretary. The party subsequently split into two factions following internal conflicts centred around him. Following this, he co-founded the Gono Odhikar Parishad with former DUCSU VP Nurul Haque Nur, where he served as the convener, before that party too faced a division.
