BNP will weigh situation: Fakhrul
BNP will assess the political situation to decide whether to contest the upcoming city corporation elections, said Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday.
“If a proper electoral atmosphere is not ensured, we will think about our participation,” he said after offering prayers at the grave of party leader Khandaker Delwar Hossain in Ghior upazila of Manikganj, reports our local correspondent.
Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda, while visiting Election Commission office in Poba upazila of Rajshahi yesterday, said the election to five city corporations -- Gazipur, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barisal and Sylhet -- will be held by July this year.
Fakhrul said, “The meaning of such elections is nothing but empowering the ruling party more.”
He claimed that there is no election atmosphere in the country. “The elections will only reflect what the government wishes for.”
Fakhrul alleged that the current Election Commission's only target is to put the Awami League in power again to cement the “one-party” rule, reports UNB. "We don't get surprised at the commission's activities for reflecting the government's will." He said the country's main crisis right now is that it lacks democracy and human rights. "Democracy will not be fortified by only holding such elections", he added. The BNP leader underscored the need for creating a level playing field and equal rights of all political parties.
Khandaker Delwar Hossain, the then secretary general of BNP, died at a Singapore hospital on March 16, 2011. He was 78. Born in Manikganj in 1933, Delwar was elected MP for four times and became chief whip of Jatiya Sangsad. A freedom fighter, he had been with BNP since its birth.
Meanwhile, during a discussion at Jatiya Press Club, BNP standing committee member Moudud Ahmed said, “We are being denied the minimum rights.
The government does not want BNP to participate in the election, and it is out to weaken BNP at grassroots level, Moudud alleged.
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