STAFF CORRESPONDENT

“I’ve never voted for her party, but I’m here today,” said Minhaz Uddin, a retired government employee who came with his grandson from Savar to pay his last respects to BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.

Standing near the barricades at Khamarbari, the 61-year-old said the country had lost a unifying leader at the wrong time.

“After the July uprising, like many others, I really felt the need for such a leader. She was a veteran politician who never fled the country, even when she had the chance. You have to respect that courage,” he added.

That sense of losing a “guardian” was shared by many. The three-time prime minister, who died on Tuesday, was mourned not only by her party faithful, but also by ordinary citizens who had never carried a BNP flag or voted along party lines. To them, she symbolised strength, defiance, and reassurance during turbulent times.

By noon, Manik Mia Avenue had turned into a sea of people. Students, shopkeepers, day labourers, housewives, and elderly admirers set aside their daily struggles to join the namaz-e-janaza. Some climbed rooftops, footbridges, and scaffolding, determined to witness history.

Heavy traffic and physical strain tested many, but the desire to bid farewell to the “Deshnetri” (leader of the nation) kept them moving.

Md Roni, a grocer from East Shewrapara, closed his shop, sacrificing a day’s income, and walked to Agargaon to attend the prayer.

“I came here simply to pay my last respects to Begum Khaleda Zia,” Roni said. “At a time when Bangladesh is facing a critical period, a strong leader like her was exactly what we needed. It is a huge loss for the nation,” he added.

Near Farmgate Metro Station, businessman Shahidul Islam Russell recalled Khaleda Zia’s role in the 1990 anti-autocracy movement. “She was the key figure who restored democracy. We cannot forget that debt. I came here with some of my old friends to pay tribute,” he said.

Mohammad Suman and five of his friends from the Bhasantek slum area also attended the prayer. Asked whether they were affiliated with any political party, Suman replied, “We are not affiliated with any parties.”

Suman works at a printing press in Mirpur 13, while his friends are auto drivers or small shopkeepers.

Like tens of thousands of others, they said they had come simply to pay their final respects to a leader who always stood steadfast for the country.