CHITTAGONG: The followers of Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani have started proceeding for Santosh in Tangail district to attend the peasants conference which will decide two vital issues — participation of his group in the election and launching of Islamic Cultural Revolution.

About 160 people wearing red caps have left Chittagong today [Jan 17] to attend the conference which begins from Jan 19. According to the NAP [National Awami Party] sources about 600 to 700 workers, peasants and students are likely to form a contingent from Chittagong. They believe that there will be an assembly of over one lakh people at Santosh. They feel the conference would favour NAP’s participation in the forthcoming elections and for the purpose of using it as a forum for voicing the grievances of farmers, labourers and students.

It appears that it will not be a smooth sailing for the Maulana to use the Santosh peasants’ conference as a launching pad for his proposed Islamic Cultural Revolution but it is believed that he would be able to muster support despite opposition by the so-called intellectuals...

The NAP circles could not exactly indicate as to what would be the shape of their Cultural Revolution although Maulana Bhashani openly declared [it would] begin with public picketing against drinking and corruption etc.

Published in Dawn, January 18th, 2020