Bangladeshi-born Rushanara Ali, lawmaker for Bethnal Green and Bow in Britain, visited her birthplace at Bhurki of Bishwanath in Sylhet on Friday.
Her uncles Asaddar Ali and Abdur Ruf and cousins, along with their neighbours received the British lawmaker at the place about 7:00pm.
Abdur Ruf over telephone told New Age in an emotion choked voice that they much happy to have her among them as a member of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.
‘We prayed to Allah for her victory in the elections. We also hope she will be able to meet the expectations of the Bangladeshi community living the United Kingdom,’ he said.
This was Rushanara’s first visit to Sylhet after being elected lawmaker on a Labour Party ticket.
Earlier in the afternoon, a number of people, led by the Sylhet mayor, Badar Uddin Ahmad Kamran, received Rushanara on her arrival at Sylhet Osmani International Airport about 2:00pm in a flight of the United Airways Limited.
Rushanara expressed her gratitude to the people of her birthplace for their good wishes and cooperation during the elections to the British parliament.
Rushanara was then taken to the Circuit House. Later in the afternoon, she also visited the shrines of Hazrat Shahjalal and Hazrat Shah Paran.
She left the Circuit House for her birthplace after the maghrib prayers and reached there about 7:00pm, her relatives said. The local administration in the afternoon said she would stay for the night at the Circuit House in the city.
The Sylhet City Corporation will accord a citizens’ reception to her at Nagar Bhaban at 10:30am today, city corporation officials said.
She also will exchange views with the local journalists in the conference room of Nagar Bhaban after the reception, the officials said.
