Bangladesh Railway has arranged four special trains to help transport participants from Rajshahi, Sirajganj, Mymensingh, and Chattogram to Dhaka for the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s national rally, set to take place tomorrow (19 July) at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan.
West Zone Railway General Manager Farid Ahmed confirmed the arrangements, explaining that the trains were allocated following the payment of advance fares, service charges, and other dues, all done according to the rules.
Since these trains are scheduled on a Saturday, which is the weekly off day for these services, regular train operations won’t be disrupted, he added.
The special Rajshahi-Dhaka-Rajshahi train was organized after Jamaat’s Rajshahi metropolitan office secretary submitted a request. This train will leave Rajshahi Railway Station at 1 a.m. on Saturday and return from Dhaka’s Kamalapur Station at 8:15 p.m. the same day.
According to a letter dated 16 July from Assistant Chief Operating Superintendent (West) Md Abdul Awal, the service will use the weekly off-day rake of the 755/756 Madhumati Express. The train will have 14 coaches, offering a total of 1,179 seats. These include 24 AC berth seats, while the rest are Shovon Chair class.
On this day, instead of the usual route via the Padma Bridge, the train will travel via the Jamuna Bridge, stopping at Rajshahi University, Horiyan, and Sardah Road stations in both directions.
Md Shahadat Hossain, Jamaat’s Rajshahi Assistant Secretary, shared, “We have completed all preparations for tomorrow’s grand rally. From Rajshahi alone, we have reserved one train and 70 buses.
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We expect at least 25,000 to 30,000 leaders and activists from the city to attend. Our reserved train will depart around 12:30 a.m., and from this evening onward, most passengers on Dhaka-bound trains will be from our group.”
Another special train has been approved for the Sirajganj Bazar–Dhaka–Sirajganj Bazar route. A letter dated 17 July from Deputy Chief Operating Superintendent-1 Mosammat Arfin Nahar states that the 775/776 Sirajganj Express rake, also on its weekly off day, will operate this service.
This train, with 592 seats including 424 Shovon, 144 Shovon Chair, and 24 First Class, will leave Sirajganj at 6 a.m. and return from Dhaka at 11:55 p.m. It will also use the Jamuna Rail Bridge.
The railway emphasized that all services will only run after the full payment of applicable charges, following standard procedure.
Additionally, authorities from the Railway’s East Zone have arranged two more special trains for Jamaat leaders and activists traveling from Chattogram and Mymensingh to Dhaka for the rally. One train will run the Dhaka-Chattogram route, and the other will cover Dhaka-Mymensingh, according to railway officials.
