Hasina blames BNP for debacle, Fakhrul alleges plot to eliminate opponents
Urging BNP to find out reasons of its defeat in the general elections, Awami League president, prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday said a party that failed in mobilising people for a movement cannot win public support in the election fray.
“The BNP has many reasons for their defeat in the 30 December 2018 election. One is their failure to wage anti-government agitation involving the people,” BSS quoted her as saying.
BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has alleged that the government is trying to 'eliminate' its opponents with its 'repressive acts', reports UNB.
In a statement on Thursday, he said, "The ruling party has become desperate to root out BNP by resorting to various evil designs."
The statement was issued protesting the jailing of Saiful Islam Firoz, the BNP's candidate for Jhenaidah-4 seat in the 11th parliamentary elections, in a 'false and baseless' case.
Fakhrul alleged that getting isolated from people, the government has kept many opposition leaders and activists in jail implicating them in 'bizarre and fabricated' cases to prolong the one-party 'misrule'.
He said Saiful Islam Firoz was sent to jail as he appeared before a lower court on Wednesday seeking bail in a 'false' case. "Firoz has become subjected to the government's political vengeance."
The BNP secretary general demanded that the government immediately release Firoz withdrawing the 'false' and 'politically motivated' cases filed against him."
According to BSS, premier Hasina talked about the BNP addressing a discussion marking ‘Bangabandhu’s Home Coming Day’ from Pakistani prison on 10 January 1972 after Bangladesh got independence defeating Pakistani occupation forces in a nine-month bloody war.
“I would ask BNP to find the causes of their defeat,” Sheikh Hasina said adding that “a political party which failed in movement cannot win the election, and it was proved in the 2018 election.”
Bangladesh Awami League’s central working committee organised the discussion at Bangladesh Krishibid Institution (KBI). Party leaders Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed, Matia Chowdhury Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman, AFM Bahauddin Nasim, AKM Rhmatullah and Shah Alam Murad also took part in the discussion.
“Was there no leader in the BNP except a convicted person to be made their chairman?” Sheikh Hasina asked. She said trading with nomination is another major cause of BNP’s disaster in the election.
“They (BNP) put their nomination in auction and the highest bidder got nomination. Many of them met with me and spoke of their anguish,” she said.
Above all, the prime minister said BNP has given nomination to 25 leaders of Jamaat the entity of which was declared illegal by the country’s highest court. She said, “People of Bangladesh now believe in the spirit of the war of liberation and they will never give vote for any war criminal.”
As a political party, she said, the BNP doesn’t pursue any principle. “They are guided by vice like corruption, terrorism, money laundering, eating up orphans’ money and burning people alive.”
“So, how they expect to win the election. People of Bangladesh never accepted it, and they will not accept it in future,” she added.
The prime minister said Awami League had framed its election manifesto aimed at making Bangladesh a developed and prosperous nation in South Asia. Each and every economic plan of Awami League government was undertaken in light of the election manifesto to take forward the country at a quick pace.