BNP welcomes army deployment

Logo of BNP
Logo of BNP

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Sunday welcomed the election commission's decision to deploy army from Monday ahead of the general election billed for 30 December, reports UNB.

In a statement, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam said, "I strongly urge the Bangladesh Army to ensure equal opportunities for all political parties and candidates."

"We sincerely believe the deployment of army will help create an atmosphere for a fair and neutral election which has so far been absent," he added.

Fakhrul said they also hope that every member of the army will play an effective role in protecting the interests of people instead of working for any individual or any particular section of people in any way.

"Bangladesh Army has always been dedicated to serving the country and the nation. Their image can't be tainted for protecting any individual's interest."

On 13 December, the election commission decided that members of the armed forces will be deployed as the striking force for 10 days from 24 December in the forthcoming national election.

The EC officials said over 700,000 security men alongside the armed forces members will be there in the field on the voting day.

Meanwhile, a total of 1,016 platoons of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) forces were deployed across the country on 18 December to maintain the law and order.