Factions to accept Khaleda's decision

Top leaders of different factions of Chittagong BNP yesterday pledged to accept party chairperson's decision regarding the city unit committee unconditionally.
Dejected by the fact that the Chittagong council of the party on Monday was foiled because of intra-party clashes, they urged the party high command to form the new committee "with all dedicated leaders".
During a closed-door meeting with party Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain, top leaders of Chittagong BNP Abdullah Al Noman and Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury blamed each other for the clashes.
A faction leader held city unit leadership responsible for the foiled council while another alleged that a few party men aided by outsiders were behind the incident.
Towards the end of the four-hour-long meeting, Delwar asked the Chittagong leaders if they would accept the decision of Chairperson Khaleda Zia regarding the city committee. As all the leaders agreed, Delwar collected signatures from them.
After the Chittagong council had been postponed following clashes, Khaleda formed an investigation committee led by Delwar to find out the reasons behind the incident and resolve the factional crisis without any delay.
Delwar yesterday summoned four top leaders of Chittagong--central Joint Secretary General Abdullah Al Noman, Chittagong city Convener Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, central International Affairs Secretary Mir Nasir Uddin, and former foreign minister M Morshed Khan--at the meeting. Morshed Khan, however, did not attend the meeting.
Chittagong city unit joint conveners Dastagir Chowdhury, Shahadat Hossain, Shamsul Alam and Syed Wahidul Alam were also present at the meeting that started at 12:40pm at the party's central office at Naya Paltan.
Meeting sources said Delwar first collected statements of all the leaders to submit them to the chairperson at night for making the final decision. Later, he separately talked with Noman, Khasru and Mir Nasir.
Sources said Noman and Nasir blamed the failure of the current city committee leadership for the intra-party clash that took place during the inaugural session of the council.
Delwar asked Noman and Nasir, who had been rivals in the politics of Chittagong for a long time, how they became so close suddenly. The two leaders told Delwar that they have been working together for the last couple of months, a city leader said.
"The chairperson will form the city committee in line with the party constitution as we all have failed to make the council successful. But it would be investigated whether any third party was involved in foiling the council session," Noman told reporters after the meeting.
He said, "I am engaged with national politics, not the Chittagong city committee. But I want to see dedicated leaders in the committee."
Amir Khasru said they got indication that some outsiders were involved with the incident. He said there is no scope to hold the council again and now the central leadership will take necessary steps to form the new committee.
Mir Nasir termed the incident unexpected and unfortunate and said it should be ensured that such incident does not recur.
Delwar or any of his representatives did not make any comment about the outcome of yesterday's meeting or the party's next course of action.