“No one capable of stopping me has been born yet.”

Barrister Rumeen Farhana, an independent parliamentary candidate in the Brahmanbaria-2 constituency—comprising Sarail, Ashuganj and parts of Bijoynagar—has declared that her political journey is fuelled by an unyielding commitment to speaking out against injustice and corruption, regardless of consequence or opposition.

Addressing local voters during a campaign walkabout in Kuchni Budda village under Noagaon Union of Sarail Upazila on Tuesday afternoon (6 January), the former BNP Assistant Secretary for International Affairs delivered a forthright and uncompromising speech that resonated strongly with her audience. With characteristic candour, she proclaimed that surviving five years of political intimidation under Sheikh Hasina’s administration had steeled her resolve beyond fear.

“If I can endure five years of threats and pressure under Hasina,” she asserted emphatically, “then there is no power on earth that can silence me.”

Throughout her address, Farhana painted a stark portrait of what she described as the moral decay of contemporary politics. She criticised the growing practice of “rent-a-candidate” politics, alleging that financial opportunism has replaced ideology and public service. In a tone laced with biting irony, she remarked that political allegiance today is often reduced to trivial choices, while the true ambition is to amass vast personal wealth within months of attaining power.

“Extortion and profiteering have become the unspoken manifesto,” she said, warning that such practices have no place in a healthy democratic culture.

Farhana went on to accuse entrenched political interests of engaging in widespread malpractice, including the illegal seizure of businesses, unlawful sand extraction, land grabbing, and environmentally destructive land-filling. She argued that these activities have not only sullied the reputation of politics but have also alienated ordinary citizens, pushing them away from civic participation altogether.

Clarifying her own position, she reiterated a pledge she has long made publicly: to oppose extortion, land grabbing and what she termed the “commercialisation of legal cases”. She vowed that as long as she remains alive, she will continue to speak the truth and challenge wrongdoing, irrespective of the perpetrator’s identity or political affiliation.

Barrister Farhana had initially sought the BNP’s official nomination for the Brahmanbaria-2 seat in the forthcoming national parliamentary election. However, the BNP-led alliance ultimately awarded the nomination to Allama Junayed Al Habib, Vice-President of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Bangladesh. Following the denial of her candidacy, Farhana chose to contest the election as an independent candidate—a decision that led to disciplinary action by her former party.

On 30 December, the BNP formally expelled her from the party, stripping her of her organisational post. Undeterred, Farhana has remained visibly active on the campaign trail, presenting herself to voters as a fearless, principled and uncompromising alternative to conventional politics.

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