BNP leaders, workers asked not to file nominations

BNP National Working Committee has urged the party leaders and workers to refrain from participating in the "farcical" pourasava (municipal) elections, reports UNB.

The request came from a meeting of the working committee yesterday morning with BNP secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan in the chair.

Party vice-presidents, joint secretary general, office-bearers, members, members of the chairperson's advisory council and MPs were present.

The meeting also directed the party leaders and workers not to file nomination papers in the election and instead take programmes to mobilise public opinion against the municipal polls.

The issue of municipal polls boycott and the current political situation came up for discussion in the meeting, which categorically said there is no election atmosphere in the country.

The government and the Election Commission have failed to create the atmosphere, the meeting said.

The present government, the meeting alleged, has been "trampling the democracy by running the country in BAKSAL style, and at the same time, ruining the institutions, including parliament, election commission and the judiciary."

The BNP Working Committee said none of the elections was free and fair under the present government during its two and a half-year rule.

The ruling Awami League had "hijacked the genuine verdict of the electorates through vote dacoity, rigging and terrorism," it said.

"And in all such acts, the subservient Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commission had helped the government," the meeting alleged.

It said EC implemented the government's design without scrutinising the specific complaints lodged by BNP about vote dacoity, rigging, terrorism and violation of the electoral rules.

In this context, the BNP working committee meeting referred to two verdicts of the Election Tribunals. In Dhaka-10 constituency, results of 51 centres out of 78 have been cancelled and in Narayanganj-2 constituency, the BNP nominee was declared elected instead of the Awami League candidate after recounting in two centres.

All these prove that the Election Commission has been working under the directives of the government, it said.

Under such circumstances, the opposition parties have put forward the four-point demand for ensuring a transparent and fair election, the BNP working committee said.

The committee urged the party leaders and workers to make the today's countrywide hartal a success and be prepared for a greater movement.