Jamaat chief collapses on stage during speech at Suhrawardy Udyan rally

Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman has fallen ill while delivering the closing address at the party’s national rally at Suhrawardy Udyan.

The incident occurred at around 5:25pm on Saturday as Shafiqur began his closing remarks as chair of the event.

Midway through his speech, he suddenly collapsed on stage, reports bdnews24.com.

He was helped to his feet by party leaders standing beside him and attempted to resume his address. However, he lost his balance and collapsed a second time within moments.

A microphone announcement soon followed, saying the party chief had fallen ill due to the heat. Though he was advised not to continue, Shafiqur insisted on finishing his speech seated. As he spoke, doctors were seen checking his blood pressure on stage.

Jamaat's rally came to an end about 10 minutes later as Shafiqur concluded his remarks.

The rally was organised to press home seven demands, including justice for all mass killings and the introduction of a proportional representation (PR) voting system.

Though Jamaat had previously held events in front of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque and nearby areas like Paltan, this was the first time the Islamist party held a public rally at Suhrawardy Udyan.