As part of BNP’s efforts to forge unity among political parties and build consensus on holding the national election by December this year, a delegation of the party held a closed-door meeting with several left-leaning party leaders on Sunday.
The hour-long meeting, which began around 4pm, took place at a hotel in the city's Banani area, said BNP media cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan.
He said Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) Advisory Council Member Mujahidul Islam Selim, CPB President Shah Alam, General Secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince, Joint General Secretary Mihir Ghosh, Bangladesh Socialist Party (Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal-BSD) General Secretary Bazlur Rashid Firoz, and Joint General Secretary Rajekuzzaman Ratan, among others, attended the meeting.
BNP Standing Committee members Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, and Vice Chairman Barkatullah Bulu were present at the meeting, Sayrul said.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Ruhin Hossain Prince said it was an informal meeting with BNP leaders where they discussed the upcoming election, the current political situation and the need to establish a new political culture in which all parties engage in dialogue and exchange views.
Prince said they attended the meeting at the invitation of BNP leaders for tea. “As politicians, over tea we talked about the election and the country’s political situation. We would like to emphasise our intention to help build a new political culture where we can meet and understand each other.”
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He said the past political culture discouraged interaction among rival politicians. “We want to break this tradition and introduce a new and positive culture. As part of that initiative, we held this meeting. We also met earlier with leaders of other parties, including the NCP.”
In response to a question, Prince said the CPB and other left-leaning parties believe a fair election can be held before December after carrying out necessary reforms. “BNP is talking about an election by December, but we think it can take place even earlier,” he said.
Mujahidul Islam Selim said those who advocate for reforms after the election are the ones genuinely in favour of change. “But those who want to carry out reforms without any election through a decree are trying to build the bricks on sand rather than on a solid foundation.
He said public participation and consent through an election are essential for reforms to be built on a strong foundation.
Selim, however, said the reforms necessary to ensure a fair and credible election must be implemented before voting takes place.
“It is the right approach to move forward with reforms by first strengthening their foundation through an election. Those who reject this path may harbour ill intentions under the guise of reform,” he added.
END/UNB/ARJ/SAM