The interim administration said on Tuesday that Khaleda Zia, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, will be buried with full state honors alongside her late husband, President Ziaur Rahman, on Wednesday.
Zia, a three-time prime minister and veteran leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), passed away in Dhaka earlier today following a protracted illness. She was eighty years old.
According to Law Advisor Asif Nazrul, her funeral would take place on Wednesday following Zohr prayers in Parliament’s South Plaza and the nearby Manik Mia Avenue.
Nazrul informed reporters following a special meeting of the interim government’s Advisory Council at the state guest house Jamuna that she would subsequently be buried with full state honors next to the grave of her husband, former president and BNP founder Ziaur Rahman, at Zia Udyan in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the secretary general of the BNP, was a special guest at the gathering.
Zia’s funeral will be attended by foreign dignitaries, including Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
According to an official announcement, Jaishankar will go to Dhaka on Wednesday to attend the funeral on behalf of the Indian government and people.
The state-run BSS news agency quoted a representative of the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka as saying, “We have the confirmation that our Deputy Prime Minister will come here (Dhaka) and join the Janaza.” Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus had earlier declared a one-day general holiday and a three-day state of mourning in a televised speech to the country.
“At the death of former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia, I declare three days of state mourning and a one-day general holiday tomorrow on the day of her Namaz-e-Janaza (funeral prayers),” he stated.
During funeral prayers and the nationwide celebration of mourning, Yunus asked people to uphold order and discipline.
“I am aware that you are all experiencing extreme sadness right now. “I hope you will cooperate with everyone involved in observing the formalities, including her Namaz-e-Janaza, and be patient during this time of mourning,” he stated.
The national flag will be flown at half-mast throughout the period of mourning at all government, semi-government, and autonomous establishments, educational institutions, government and private buildings nationwide, and Bangladeshi missions overseas.
The group also decided to hold special prayers and supplications for Zia’s eternal peace on Wednesday at mosques around the nation, with comparable prayers to be offered in places of worship of other religions.
The Bangladeshi missions overseas will open condolence books.
According to Yunus, the government will offer various forms of assistance for Zia’s funeral and burial.
