BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Monday said their party sees no reason to wait beyond December for the 13th national election as the Election Commission is ready to conduct it after June.
“We do not see any obstacle to holding the elections by December since the Election Commission has said they will be ready by June,” he said while talking to reporters after a meeting with the Labour Party at the BNP Chairperson’s office in Gulshan.
Nazrul, a BNP Standing Committee member, also said the Consensus Commission has informed them that it expects to reach a consensus on reforms by mid-May through discussions with political parties, paving the way for the drafting of a national charter.
“Then I see no reason to wait longer than December for the elections after the necessary reforms are completed,” he said.
The BNP leader said if any party disagrees with the BNP's position, they should explain why additional time would be necessary.
Replying to a question, Nazrul said there is not much difference between the BNP and the government regarding the timing of the election. “The government hasn’t said that the election won’t be held in December.”
He pointed out that the government stated the election would be held between December and June. “What does that mean? It means the election could be held in December.”
The BNP leader said their party has proposed that a roadmap be announced, assuming December as the cut-off time for the election.
“The government hasn't ruled out December, and we have simply asked for clarity. Their statement includes December, January, or even February, so the gap between our positions is not a matter of many months. We are just asking them to express it differently — such as by stating it will be held by December,” he said.
When asked about allegations made by the newly formed National Citizen Party (NCP) that the BNP had placed its loyalists in the administration, Nazrul responded, “The person who made this claim was himself an adviser to the government. Does that mean they appointed BNP supporters everywhere? In reality, BNP was ousted from the administration.”
BNP, left-leaning leaders hold talks on election, political situation
During the previous government’s tenure, Nazrul said there was no place for BNP loyalists in the administration.
He said around 700 officers, including 114 secretaries, who were subjected to discrimination and unfairly dismissed or removed from their posts during the Awami League’s rule, were granted retrospective promotions.
“Yet, not a single one of them has been appointed to a position. So, where exactly have BNP people been placed? If even one of those deprived individuals had been appointed, then one could claim that BNP supporters were being placed in positions. What logic is there in such a claim?” the BNP leader said.
As part of BNP’s ongoing dialogue with parties and alliances involved in the movement against the Awami League government, Nazrul and fellow BNP Standing Committee member Selima Rahman held a one-hour meeting with a seven-member delegation of the Labour Party, led by its Chairman Mostafizur Rahman Iran.
The BNP formally began this new round of political talks with a meeting on Saturday with the 12-party alliance, aimed at sharing the outcome of BNP’s recent meeting with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus and deciding on its next steps.
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On April 16, a seven-member BNP delegation led by Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir met the Chief Adviser at the state guest house Jamuna, urging him to provide a specific roadmap to ensure the national election is held by December this year.
Following the meeting, Fakhrul expressed disappointment as Professor Yunus reiterated that the election would take place between December and June instead of offering a clear roadmap.