Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) President Dr Col (retd) Oli Ahmad on Saturday said Bangladesh Awami League should be banned, insisting that they have no right to do politics after its role against 18 crore people of the country in July-August protests. “Why Awami League should not be banned! We said today again, Awami League should be banned because they waged war against 18 crore people. They have no right to do politics,” he told reporters after holding dialogue with Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Saturday. Oli, who also served as Communications Minister during the BNP-Jamaat tenure, said the Awami League used all, including the police and administration, to remain in power. He said they could not survive as the army and some police refused to open fire during the protest which, he said, claimed over 1500 lives and injured many people. Oli said they placed 23 proposals today, including a demand for a free and fair election; and also addressed the issues of price hike of essentials. This is the second such dialogue in the current phase, which started on October 5 with the participation of BNP, Jamaat, CPB and some other parties. AL condemns move to cancel 8 significant national days Fifteen political parties, including Gono Forum, Liberal Democrats Party (LDP), and Bangladesh Jatiya Party (Andaleeve), are among the parties who are invited to join today's dialogue. The key purpose of the dialogue is to inform the political parties about the progress of the reform work and seek their suggestions. Meanwhile, a nine-member delegation of Gono Forum joined dialogue with the Chief Adviser Prof Yunus at the state guest house Jamuna. The team led by Gono Forum emeritus President Dr Kamal Hossain entered Jamuna around 3:00pm. Almost all political parties had the opportunity to become the part of the ongoing dialogue with the Chief Adviser except Bangladesh Awami League and its key ally Jatiya Party (Ershad). Meanwhile, Law Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul on Saturday said the election timing will be fixed under the leadership of Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus as it is a very important policy decision. "He (CA) alone has the authority to declare it (election timing)," he said in a statement, further explaining his remarks made in a TV programme on Thursday night. Interim govt reviving elements of Pakistani ideology: AL Earlier, Asif Nazrul said the next national election may be arranged by the next year - 2025 - after completing the pre-election preparations, including the formation of a new Election Commission through a search committee. "I think realistically, holding the election may be possible by next year. There are many factors. This is a preliminary assumption to me," he said when Daily Manabzamin Chief Editor Matiur Rahman Chowdhury wanted to know about the election timing during a programme titled "Ajker Patrika" hosted by Channel I . Dr Asif said a search committee will be formed soon to help form the new Election Commission. The new EC will then prepare a flawless voters' list and then an election will be held, he said. In his statement, Dr Asif said he did not get a chance to fully explain these factors there. But everyone will understand from the words of the government that there are issues of reform and political consensus for the elections, said the Adviser. "These are the factors. I also spoke about the reforms," he said. "Some other factors I have explained in the programme, such as: formation of search committee and election commission, preparation of voter list etc," he added. The Adviser said if these factors remain okay, the election may be held next year. "I also said this from my primary assumption.” These conditional ideas and assumptions are presented by some media as an election announcement. Honestly, this is not correct," Asif Nazrul said in his statement.

Bangladesh Awami League (AL) Sheikh Hasina on Thursday asked her party members to work for turning the upcoming general election festive and competitive in a peaceful atmosphere. “Since various types of local and international conspiracies against the election are there this time, it should be held amid a peaceful environment,” she said. The AL president, who is also the prime ministrr, was addressing election rallies in six districts –Sherpur, Jamalpur, Kishoreganj, Chandpur, Narsingdi and Bandarban—through a virtual platform from AL Tejgaon Office here in the capital. She repeated her designation of opposition BNP as a terrorist party and Jamaat as a party of war criminals. Perpetrators of October 28 attacks on journalists won’t go unpunished: PM Hasina BNP and Jamaat are both boycotting the January 7 vote for fear of rigging. The PM said she doest not believe that the election won’t be a participatory one without the participation of BNP and Jamaat. “The election will be participatory, if the people and voters come out and participate in the polls,” said Hasina. She said the terrorist party, BNP, doesn’t believe in election and the party can’t do anything to ensure the welfare of the country. “They (BNP) can give nothing other than killing people and corruption,” she went on. The AL chief said this time the election was opened (particularly for its rival candidates) so that candidates of boat symbols and other symbols can run in the polls. Bangladesh’s strong position in int’l arena due to AL’s successful foreign policy: PM “Here I would like to request you to maintain a peaceful environment and seek votes for respective symbols equally. The people will vote for the candidate of their choice,” she said. Citing that AL declared its Election Manifesto 2024 on Wednesday last, she asked her party members to read the manifesto and seek the votes for the ‘boat’ symbol, raising the targets set in the manifesto before the people. She said many plots are on regarding this election. The work of BNP is only to set offices on fire and foil the election. The PM said Bangladesh has witnessed a massive development since an elected, democratic government has been in power consecutively since 2009 to 2023. But the previous government couldn’t take the country even a single step forward, rather they took the country backward. “Today we’ll have to continue the progress Bangladesh has achieved. If only the Awami League comes to power, it can uphold this pace of progress,” she said. PM Hasina sought votes for the “boat,” AL’s electoral symbol. Come to polling centres early, cast votes for Boat: PM Hasina at Pirganj rally “If AL stays in power, the emancipation of all the people of this country including the poor would come and this country would be developed and prosperous,” she said. The AL president asked her party members to go for a door-to-door campaign to seek their votes for the ‘boat’ symbol so that they can give her party scope again to serve them. The rallies were held simultaneously in Sherpur Shahid Daroga Ali Pauro Park, Jamalpur Zila School Field, Kishoreganj Old Stadium, Narsingdi Club Field, Bandarban Rajar Matt and Chandpur Hasan Ali Govt Primary School Field. The AL president introduced her party’s candidates, who are running in the election from the six districts, with the people and sought votes for them.

Awami League president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the selling of party nomination forms for the 12th parliamentary elections of Bangladesh on Saturday (November 18, 2023) after collecting her nomination form. According to the party sources, the AL chief opened the nomination paper selling from party’s central office at 23, Bangabandhu Avenue at 10:30am. AL advisory council member Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed collected PM’s nomination form for Gopalganj-3 constituency. PM Hasina to inaugurate AL's selling of nomination forms Saturday Kazi Habibul Awal announced that the national election will be held on January 7. Those seeking party nominations will be able to collect and submit nomination papers from Saturday (November 18) to Tuesday (November 21) between 10am and 4pm daily. Candidates seeking nominations will have to collect and submit the application forms from the specific booth according to the administrative division from the central office of Bangladesh Awami League at 23 Bangabandhu Avenue. Nomination papers of Dhaka, Mymensingh, Sylhet and Chattogram divisions will be distributed on the second floor of the central office. Meanwhile, candidates from Rangpur, Rajshahi, Khulna and Barishal divisions will be able to collect nomination forms from the third floor of the central office . Nomination papers of all departments will be submitted on the ground floor of the central office, according to the press release. Nomination seekers will have to collect and submit the application forms by themselves or through qualified representatives of the candidates without any additional public gathering, read the press release. Seek public apology for killing people and arson violence: PM Hasina asks BNP, Jamaat The candidate will have to bring a photocopy of their national ID card with them to collect nomination papers. The deadline for submission of nomination papers is November 30, while December 1-4 was fixed for scrutinising nomination papers and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is December 17. The CEC announced the national election schedule of Bangladesh during a televised address to the nation.

Awami League’s Dhaka South unit has postponed its sit-in program as it failed to acquire permission from Dhaka Metropolitan Police.  However, party leaders and activists are on high alert and will take position in front of the party’s thana and ward-level offices.  Also read: BNP’s sit-ins: Huge law enforcers deployed at Dhaka’s  key entry points Dhaka City South Awami League Office Secretary Riaz Uddin Riaz said, "Our previously announced sit-in program has been withdrawn as a mark of respect to the law enforcement agencies. Yesterday, leaders and activists of Dhaka City South Awami League and its associate organizations announced programs at Demra, Jatrabari, Babu Bazar, Shyampur, Kamalapur at the entry points of Dhaka from Saturday morning in response to BNP's sit-in program. Also read: DMP denies AL, BNP permission for programmes on Saturday  

Md Shahabuddin Chuppu, who is set to become the next President of Bangladesh, is a lawyer by profession and a member of the Advisory Council of Bangladesh Awami League. Md Shahabuddin was born in Pabna in 1949 and was one of the first members of Pabna district Chhatra League, Awami League’s student wing. He would eventually become the unit’s president. In 1971, he was the convenor of the Swadhin Bangla Chhatra Sangram Parishad in Pabna, and took part in Liberation War. He became the president of the Pabna district Jubo League in 1974. Read More: Md Shahabuddin Chuppu set to become country’s next president He was imprisoned following the brutal assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975. He was later appointed as the Law Ministry’s coordinator in the Bangabandhu assassination case. In 1982, he joined the BCS (Judicial) Department, and in 1995, he was elected General Secretary of the Judicial Service Association. He served as the chairman of the Judicial Inquiry Commission, which investigated murders, rapes, thefts, and other crimes by BNP-Jamaat alliance’s activists and leaders following the 2001 general election. He also worked as a District and Sessions Judge and retired in 2006. He was a commissioner at Anti-Corruption Commission from 2011 to 2016. Also Read: ‘Everything is Allah’s will’: Md Shahabuddin, set to become next President of Bangladesh In the previous National Council of Bangladesh Awami League, he served as election commissioner. He earned his LLB from Rajshahi University in 1975, and completed his MSc from the same institution. Md Shahabuddin’s wife Prof Dr Rebecca Sultana, is a former joint secretary of the government. According to the schedule, the presidential election will be held on February 19 as the tenure of incumbent President Abdul Hamid nears an end. The final date for submitting nomination papers was February 12 and those will be reviewed on February 13, as per the EC. The commission set February 14 as the final date for withdrawing nominations. Voting will be held at Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban from 2 pm to 5 pm on February 19. According to the constitution, a new president has to be elected within 90 to 60 days prior to the end of the incumbent president's tenure. The previous presidential election schedule was announced on January 25, 2018. Abdul Hamid was elected president unopposed for the second term on February 6 though the election was slated for February 18. President Hamid is set to complete his tenure on April 23 this year

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said if her party can form government again its vision would be transforming every village into a township and the country into a ‘Smart Bangladesh’ by 2041. “If Bangladesh Awami League forms the government in the future, our vision will be building a ‘Smart Bangladesh' by 2041,” she told Parliament, replying to a starred question from Jatiya Party lawmaker Rustum Ali Faraji (Pirojpur-3). The Prime Minister said a ‘Smart Bangladesh’ will be based on smart citizens, smart economy, smart government and smart society. She said Awami League's "Election Manifesto-2018: Bangladesh on the journey to Prosperity" which was presented before the nation on the eve of the 11th National Parliamentary elections outlined plans for building a 'prosperous and developed Bangladesh by 2041' and a 'safe delta' by 2100. As the first step in the journey of a developed Bangladesh, the country has already become a developing one from a least developed country, she said. Bangladesh will become an upper middle-income country by 2031 with average per capita income above $ 5,906 and Bangladesh will be a developed country in 2041 with per capita income of over $ 12,500, she said. Noting that currently the GDP growth rate in Bangladesh is 7.25 percent, Hasina said the target is to raise the rate to 8.51 in 2025, 9.0 in 2031 and 9.9 in 2041. In order to accomplish the vision, different short, medium and long-term plans will be taken, she said. Read more: From ‘Digital Bangladesh’ to ‘Smart Bangladesh’ by 2041, PM announces The plans, which now are under consideration, include the 2nd perspective plan 2021-2041 to build a ‘Smart Bangladesh’ in the line with the Vision-2041, Bangladesh Delta Plan-2100 to build a smart delta, the 9th five-year plan (2026-2030), the 10th five-year plan (2031-2035) and the 11th five-year plan (2036-2040), she said. The PM said the agricultural production would be raised through promoting agricultural mechanisation; small, cottage, medium and large industries would be developed:  all projects undertaken for road, sea, rail and air connectivity would be completed; a massive employment would be generated by ensuring local and foreign investment in 100 economic zones, and steps would be taken emphasising on agriculture and food processing industries. She also said the production of digital devices and the own market for the devices would be expanded by increasing the purchasing power of the people of Bangladesh alongside finding new overseas markets for the items. Hasina said the overall living standard of all the people of Bangladesh will be improved by ensuring the basic needs of people -- clothing, shelter, education and medical care- up to the grassroots level in the country. Read more: AL's V-Day vow: To build fully-developed, Smart Bangladesh by 2041 “A developed golden Bangladesh will be built by transforming every village into a township,” she said, adding that the detailed plans will be published in the next election manifesto in time.

Bangladesh Awami League will observe the historic ‘Homecoming Day’ of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on Tuesday. The programmes will begin with hoisting of the national and party flags at the AL central office, Bangabandhu Bhaban, and its party offices across the country at 6:30 am on Tuesday, said a party press release. The Awami League leaders will pay the homage by placing wreaths at the portrait of the Father of the Nation in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi in Dhaka on Tueaday morning. At 11 am, an AL delegation will pay respect to the undisputed leader of the nation by placing wreaths at his grave in Tungipara. The AL delegation will include its presidium member Lt Col Muhammad Faruk Khan, central committee members - Awowar Hossain, Shabuddin Farazi Iqbal Hossain Apu, Marufa Akter Popy, Gloria Sarkar Jharana. On the occasion, a discussion will be held on a limited scale at the party's central office in the city's Bangabandhu Avenue at 3.30 pm, maintaining the health safety guidelines while Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina will preside over the event. Read more: AL chalks out programmes to observe Bangabandhu’s Homecoming Day Besides, all district, city, upazila, thana, union and ward level units of the AL, its associate and likeminded bodies will organise similar programmes to observe the day in a befitting manner. In a statement, AL General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader urged all party leaders and workers and its associate and likeminded bodies to observe all the programmes, marking the Bangabandhu's Homecoming Day in a befitting manner. Bangabandhu, the undisputed leader of the nation and supreme commander of the country's Liberation War, returned to the sacred soil of independent Bangladesh via London and New Delhi on January 10 in 1972, after 290 days of confinement in Pakistan jail. Read more: Bangabandhu's Homecoming Day observed  

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said rumours are being spread that there is no money in the banks. “We are not facing problems by the grace of Allah. There is money in every bank,” she said. She was addressing the 30th National Council of BCL, the student wing of Bangladesh Awami League, at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka. The PM said a quarter with vested interest wants to mislead people. “We have created ‘Digital Bangladesh’, but they are using it against us,” she said. Sheikh Hasina harshly criticised a section of intellectuals and dignitaries who have “joined hands with BNP to oust the government.” Read more: ‘Just mention BNP-Jamaat’s misdeeds under their propaganda posts on social media’ “Many knowledgeable persons and dignitaries have joined hands with BNP – giving us theories and lectures on democracy… Many say that they are not intellectuals, rather intellectually disabled,” she said. She said those intellectuals have accepting a convict – sentenced on charges of August 21 grenade attack, money laundering and arms smuggling – as their leader. “My question is, why this attempt to snatch the rights of people by joining hands with such criminals?” – she asked. “Awami League believes in democracy and the power of people. So, AL handed over power in a peaceful manner,” she said, criticizing Khaleda Zia for holding an election with “no voters” on February 15, 1996. Read more: Women entrepreneurs can avail special opportunities in economic zones: PM Khaleda Zia was forced to step down in face of public movement after that lopsided election, she said, adding that BNP leaders should not forget that. Sheikh Hasina, also AL president, urged students including BCL activists to groom themselves as worthy citizens of Bangladesh so that they can contribute to the continuation of development. She asked the BCL leaders and activists to create public opinion so that killers and anti-liberation forces including razakar and Al-Badr cannot ever come to power in the country. The PM asked meritorious students among the BCL to pursue their studies properly, including technical education, and sit for PSC examination as an efficient administration is needed to govern the country. Read More: Dhaka, Delhi agree on security, border management to strengthen cooperation “Yes, we need politics. But at the same time, we need efficient administration and technical education,” she said. Sheikh Hasina extended her thanks to BCL for standing by the people during every national crisis, particularly throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent flood in Sylhet region.

Free and fair elections in Bangladesh “must include a level playing field” for all participants, including political parties, said the US Embassy in Dhaka on Monday on conclusion of US Deputy Assistant Secretary Afreen Akhter’s two-day visit here. The US official and US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas met with representatives of Bangladesh's three major political parties – Bangladesh Awami League, Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jatiya Party. Before leaving Dhaka, Afreen Akhter had a breakfast meeting with Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen at a city hotel on Monday. “Absolutely, there is trust and respect for each other,” she said referring to her meeting with political leaders. Read more: Working closely with civil society for fair elections: Visiting US official She highlighted the cooperation between Bangladesh and the US in a whole range of areas including health, climate and economic cooperation. Talking to reporters, Foreign Secretary Masud said they talked about a number of issues and it was “not an election-centric” discussion. "Our USAID mission is working very closely with the civil society actors across Bangladesh to support their efforts to provide free and fair elections in Bangladesh,” Akhter told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday. Read more: Govt to support Election Commission in holding fair election: Law Minister During her meeting with Secretary (Maritime Affairs Unit) Rear Admiral (Retd) Md Khurshed Alam, the US official discussed maritime security and how they can cooperate with Bangladesh and other forms of maritime cooperation in the region during the meeting. The Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) for Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and the Maldives, as well the Office of Security and Transnational Affairs most recently served as a Senior Adviser to SCA Assistant Secretary Don Lu. Previously, Akhter was the National Security and Foreign Affairs Adviser to U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday questioned how BNP leader Tarique Rahman can lead the party when he does not dare to return home. “If a political leader has no courage to return home, how can he lead?” she wondered addressing a discussion, marking the 73rd founding anniversary of Bangladesh Awami League. Hasina, also president of ruling AL, presided over the discussion held at her party’s central office in the city’s Bangabandhu Avenue through a videoconference from Ganobhaban. Read:PM in JS: Measures taken to make next parliamentary polls more acceptable She said it is not correct to say that Tarique Zia is not allowed to return home. “None ousted him. He willingly went abroad and then didn’t return,” she said. Tarique went abroad during the caretaker government giving a written bond that he won’t do politics anymore, she said, asking the BNP leaders how they could forget it. In this context, Hasina said she was obstrcuted to return home during the caretaker government, but she came back home forcefully taking it as a challenge. Noting that she was sued in a murder case and arrest warrant was issued against her, the PM said she announced she would return home, appear before the court and face the case. The premier again raised the question how the election can be participatory one when its rival BNP is facing the crisis of right leadership.