Staff Reporter:
The BNP and like-minded parties, which have been on a simultaneous movement, on Thursday demand-ed the cancellation of the schedule for the 12th parliamentary election announced by the Election Com-mission.
They made the demand at a joint meeting at the auditorium of Bangladesh Shishu Kalyan Parishad, said a press release.
The opposition parties alleged that the government is trying to hold another one-sided election as per its blueprint, ignoring people’s demands.
They also said the government and the ruling party foiled the rallies of BNP and other opposition parties on October 28 by carrying out planned incidents of violence and sabotage on October 28.
They also alleged that the government has been arresting, repressing and suppressing the opposition lead-ers and activists for over a month by putting the blame for the violence onto them. “They (govt) have established a reign of terror across the country.”
“We’re observing with astonishment that the government is trying to arrange another lopsided election like 2014 and 2018 as per its blueprint, ignoring a mass demand for its resignation. To implement this political agenda of the government, and its cohorts the Election Commission announced the schedule for holding the 12th National Parliament election on January 7, 2024,” the press release reads.
It said the deadline for submitting nomination papers was fixed on November 30 to hold a stage-managed election.
“We reject this election schedule that was announced taking a stand against the people’s democratic right to vote. We demand the cancellation of the election schedule immediately,” it said.
“At the same time, we call for the immediate resignation of the Awami League government and for tak-ing effective political steps for the installation of a neutral interim government to conduct the election in a free, impartial, participatory and credible manner,” the opposition parties said in the press release.
They also warned that the country’s people will have no other option but to put up a resistance if the government wants to stage another farce in the name of election with stubbornness and arrogance.
The top leaders of 39 opposition parties participated in the meeting presided over by Jatiya Party (Zafar) chairman Mostafa Jamal Haider. On behalf of BNP, its Standing Committee member Nazrul Islam Khan attended the meeting.
