No alternative to free, fair election

Eminent citizens yesterday said a participatory, free and fair national election is needed to come out of the current political crisis.

While speaking at a webinar organised by Sushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan), they also said a discussion among political parties is needed to have a political settlement for free, fair and competitive elections.

Shujan held the webinar, titled "Competitive Elections, Constitutional Framework and the Future of Democracy in Bangladesh".

Former Election Commissioner Brig Gen (retd) Sakhawat Hussain said if any of the two major political parties do not participate in the election, it will not be participatory.

"So, such a situation should be created that both parties participate in it. And for this, the government has to take initiative," he added.

Shujan President Hafizuddin Khan said in the last 50 years, there was no fair election under a partisan government.

"It seems to be the same this time. That's why we want a non-party election-time government," he added.

Justice MA Matin said the current crisis the country is faced with is both constitutional and political.

"However, the centre of the crisis is politics and it should be resolved by reforming the constitution," he added.

Ridwanul Hoque, a professorial fellow at Charles Darwin University in Australia, said, "Representative, fair and free elections are the way out of the current crisis."

He too called for a non-party caretaker government to oversee the election.

Ali Riaz, a distinguished professor of political science at Illinois State University said, "The crisis is not a constitutional crisis, it is a crisis of whether there will be a participatory multi-party democracy or not."

Dhaka University Professor Asif Nazrul said the future of not only democracy but also of the existence of the nation is depending on the next election.

The home, information and public administration ministries should be given under technocrat ministers, he proposed.

Shujan Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar said to make the next polls competitive and acceptable, it is necessary to create a new political settlement through dialogue among the political parties.

"New political settlement may include consensus on election-time government, constitutional and administrative reforms," he said.

Local governance expert Prof Tofail Ahmed, and economist Ahsan H Mansur also spoke at the webinar.