BNP council likely in December

The main opposition BNP is likely to hold its national council in December this year.
BNP standing committee member and lawmaker Moudud Ahmed told The Daily Star last night that they are decided to hold the party council at the end of this year no matter whether or not the Election Commission extends the time for submitting political parties' ratified constitutions.
Moudud, who was elected an MP from Bogra-7 constituency in the April 2 by-election, said it would do BNP no harm even if the EC does not extend the time. But he did not elaborate on the matter.
Opposition Chief Whip Zainul Abdin Farroque told The Daily Star that the preparations for holding the party council in December are going on in full swing.
"We applied to the Election Commission for extending the time by six months so that we can wrap up other tasks for reorganising the party's grassroots level," Farroque said.
BNP and nine other political parties sought at least six months' additional time for holding councils to ratify the provisional changes in their constitutions and submit those to the EC as they cannot complete the task by the July 25 deadline.
On the pleas, Chief Election Commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda on July 16 said the commission would ask the government to amend the Representation of the People Order to extend the timeframe.