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BS News Agency Dhaka: Crowds flock to Dhaka’s streets to mourn the loss of the former prime minister, who led Bangladesh thrice.
Bangladesh bade farewell to former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in a state funeral that drew vast crowds mourning a towering political figure whose leadership shaped the nation for decades.
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Zia, the first woman to serve as prime minister in the South Asian nation of 170 million people, died on Tuesday aged 80. Flags flew at half-mast across the country on Wednesday as thousands of security personnel lined Dhaka’s streets while her flag-draped coffin travelled through the capital. Massive crowds gathered outside Bangladesh’s parliament building for the funeral prayers. People from Dhaka and beyond streamed towards Manik Mia Avenue, where the parliament building is located, since early morning to pay their last respects.
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Retired government official Minhaz Uddin, 70, came despite never having voted for her. “I came here with my grandson, just to say goodbye to a veteran politician whose contributions will always be remembered,” he said, watching from behind a barbed wire barricade.