However, the party is likely to allow its interested leaders to join the elections independently instead of using the party symbol -- the Sheaf of Paddy.
Some party leaders, however, think it should participate in the upazila polls to show the country’s people and the international community again how the country’s election system got collapsed and justify their allegations of vote rigging and various irregularities in the national election.
Talking to UNB, some senior BNP leaders said the 11th parliamentary election demonstrated that no election will be fair and credible under the current government and the EC, and their party’s participation in the upazila elections will only invite further repression and harassment of their grassroots leaders and activists.
They also said it will be very difficult for their party candidates to contest the upazila elections and carry out frantic electioneering as they might not get good response from the party’s ‘demoralised’ followers while many of their grassroots leaders are in jail or on the run facing many cases filed before and during the national election.
Under the circumstances, they said, their party should now focus on reorganising their different units and associate bodies and take some effective programmes to revitalise the grassroots and give legal shelters to the party men facing political cases instead of joining any election.
A BNP standing committee member said they recently held a meeting and elaborately talked about the upazila elections. “Most of our standing committee members suggested boycotting the upazila polls.”
Contacted, BNP standing committee member Mahbubur Rahman said their party is not going to join the upazila polls as they believe no fair election is possible under the current Commission.
“Our standing committee has taken a decision to boycott the upazila polls, and it’ll be made public very soon. We won’t join any election unless the current Election Commission is reconstituted,” he said.
Mahbub said most of their party standing committee members think BNP should not participate in any ‘farce’ in the name of election under Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) KM Nurul Huda-led Commission.
Another party standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said their party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will soon covey the media about their decision on the upazila polls. “We don’t have any confidence in the current Election Commission after the national election. What’s the point of joining farcical polls under it?”
BNP standing committee member Nazrul Islam Khan said they are now collecting various information and documents from their candidates across the country about the irregularities and vote frauds during the December-30 election. “We’re assessing the national election. So, we’re not now thinking of upazila polls.”
BNP’s mid-level leaders, including organising secretaries and assistant organising secretaries, recently held a meeting at BNP’s Nayapaltan central office and most of them suggested boycotting the upazila elections as party acting chairman Tarique Rahman, who joined the meeting through Skype, sought their opinions.
Contacted, BNP’s Chattogram divisional organising secretary Mahbubur Rahman Shamim said, “I think joining the upazila polls will be a meaningless and useless exercise. It’ll only invite more problems for our disturbed and dejected leaders and activists.”
He said the 11th parliamentary election demonstrated that no election can be held in a free and fair manner under the current administration and the Election Commission. “So, I think our party high-ups will take the right decision to boycot the polls.”
Another party organising secretary, wishing anonymity, said, “We’re demanding reelection bringing allegations of vote robbery in the national election and raising the question about the neutrality of the current CEC and the Commission. So, if we now join the upazila polls, our allegations of vote frauds in the national election will lose its credibility.”
“Ruling party men are still repressing our leaders and activists after the general election. Our many leaders and activists are on the run in fear of arrest in false cases. If we join the upazila polls, police will intensify their drive to arrest our activists and implicate them in more cases. So, I think our party should not join the polls.”
BNP publicity affairs secretary Shaheed Uddin Chowdhury Anee said he does not think their party should further join any election under the current Commission. “This Commission is biased. There’ll be serious vote-rigging in the upazila polls like that in the general election.”
However, a party vice chairman, preferring anonymity, said their party should join the upazila polls to unmask the true nature of the current EC and the government further. “We couldn’t have talked about the vote frauds in the national election had we not been there in the election race. So, I personally think our party needs to go to the polls to justify again our allegations of vote robbery in the national election.”