Staff Reporter:
The BNP, which had been pushing for a year-end national election, has suddenly shifted its stance, demanding it be held by mid-year, as senior party leaders sense a move to prioritize local body elec-tions by the government.
Some BNP senior leaders said a certain quarter is trying to pressure the government into holding local body elections before the national election, as part of a ploy to delay the 13th parliamentary election.
They said by demanding the national election by mid-year, their party has sent a clear message to the government that it will not accept any move to hold the local body elections.
The BNP leaders hinted that their party, along with like-minded parties, will exert pressure on the government to focus solely on promptly holding the national election through seminars, discus-sions and other programs.
A BNP standing committee member, speaking on condition of anonymity, mentioned that Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus said last week that his government was preparing to hold local gov-ernment elections alongside the national parliamentary polls, while the head of the Local Govern-ment Reforms Commission Prof Tofail Ahmed said that people outside Dhaka are emphasizing the need for local elections. “This is an indication that the government is considering holding the local body polls.”
Besides, he said, the top leader of an Islamist party recently met the Chief Adviser, urging him to prioritize the local body elections, while the Jatiya Nagorik Committee and several student organi-zations have also been advocating for the local government elections to be held before the parlia-mentary election.
“The last two meetings of our standing committee thoroughly discussed the issue. We believe the move to hold the local body polls is a plot to unnecessarily delay the parliamentary election. So, we have decided to push for the national election to be held by July-August this year instead of wait-ing until December,” the BNP policymaker said.
He said student leaders involved in the Anti-Discrimination Movement are working to form a gov-ernment with the support of the interim government. “They’re opposing an early national election as they need time to organize their party and expand its activities across the country before the polls.”
“That’s why they’re trying to persuade the government to hold the local body elections first, giv-ing them space to prepare for the national election. We do not want any party to be formed with the government’s backing, nor do we want the election to be delayed without valid reason under the guise of reforms and local body polls,” the BNP leader said.
He said their standing committee is also opposed to the Chief Adviser’s suggestion that the mini-mum voting age be lowered to 17 years. “We believe the current minimum age of 18 for becoming a voter is acceptable to all, and there is no need to change it.”
Earlier, on January 6, Prof Tofail Ahmed said while political parties are eager to hold the national election, the people outside Dhaka are more concerned about local government elections.
Three days later, Chief Advisor Dr Yunus told European Investment Bank (EIB) Vice-President Nicola that the interim government is preparing for both national and local body elections simul-taneously.
Following these developments, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday demanded that the interim government arrange the national election by August this year in the greater interest of the country.
Speaking at a press conference, Fakhrul also said there is no question of holding local government elections before the national election. “We want the parliamentary election first.”
BNP Standing Committee member Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku said the current government’s pri-mary responsibility is to hold the national election, not any other elections. “So, they should focus on how promptly they can arrange the national election. We’re also not considering any other elec-tion at this time.”
