Staff Reporter: This is the first time Bangladesh Day Parade is being held in New York. The parade will be held next Sunday (May 26) between 69-87 Street in Jackson Heights. After a long tussle among Bangladeshi community leaders over who will be the ‘grand marshal’ of the parade, the post of grand marshal of the parade has finally been cancelled.
A number of New York weekly newspapers have already published fake news calling Shah Nawaz, president of Golden Age Home Care, the grand marshal of the day parade. Protesting these news, the leaders of the United States-based World Human Rights Development Organization, the organizer of the Bangladesh Day Parade, said that there will be no grand marshal in this year’s parade. The convening committee will conduct the parade show. The news about the Grand Marshal in the newspaper is fake and fabricated. The news is not approved by the parade committee. These are their fabricated news. The parade committee rejected these reports. On behalf of the committee, Convener Shah Newaz, Co-Convenor Abdus Sobhan, Member Secretary Tariqul Islam Badal, Chairperson Shah Shahidul Haque have apologized to the expatriate Bangladeshis for the news published with permission.
The leaders of the United States-based World Human Rights Development Organization said that there is no grand marshal position in the Bangladesh Day Parade. New York Mayor Eric Adams will be the chief guest. Consul General of Bangladesh in New York Md. Nazmul Huda will be the special guest. New York City Mayor’s Office’s first Bangladeshi Chief Administrative Officer Mir Bashar, Councilwoman Shahana Hanif, Queens District Attorney Melinda Kurtz, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr., Senator Jessica Ramos, Police Commissioner Edward Kaban and others will be present.
Apart from this, the organizing organization World Human Rights Development Organization President and Bangladesh Day Parade Chairperson Shah Shahidul Haque Saeed, Parade Convener Shah Newaz, Chief Adviser Gias Ahmed, Organizing Organization General Secretary Abdus Sobhan, Parade Member Secretary Tariqul Hossain and Adviser Attorney Moin Chowdhury will be present.
M A Aziz said that the Bangladesh Society will not participate in the parade as convener Shah Newaz made indecent comments about the chairman MA Aziz along with the board of trustees of Bangladesh Society in the meeting held at Smart Tech last Wednesday, May 22. Not only that, Rano Newaz, wife of Convener Shah Newaz, raised her hand on joint convener Syed Akikur Rahman Faruk for objecting to the appointment of grand marshal.
Faruq said, in front of everyone present, a woman raised her hands on him. But no one protested like that. He sought justice for humiliating him.
In this regard, when the convenor of Bangladesh Day Parade Shah Newaz was contacted, he said that there is no grand marshal in the parade. He is the convener. However, he did not comment on the news that was published by making him a grand marshal.
Bangladesh Day Parade Chairperson Shah Shahidul Haque Sayed did not give any comment when contacted by phone message. However, General Secretary Abdus Sobhan said that the published news is not correct. We have sent a protest to the said news. He said that there are detailed references there.
When contacted with the board of trustees of the Bangladesh Society MA Aziz, he said that the president of the World Human Rights Development Organization and Bangladesh Day Parade Chairperson Shah Shahidul Haque Sayed demanded 50 thousand dollars from him for the post of grand marshal. Ever since he expressed his inability to pay such a sum of money, the Bangladeshi community leaders have been fighting for the post of grand marshal. In the end, the organizers were forced to cancel the post of grand marshal.
BP/SM
