BNP’s polls boycott conspiracy against country’s sovereignty: Quader

Governing Bangladesh Awami League (AL) General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader Friday said Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) non-participation in the 12th general elections is part of its conspiracy against the country’s sovereignty.

He made the remark while speaking at a press conference at the AL president’s political office in the capital’s Dhanmondi this afternoon.

The election would have been more competitive had the BNP participated in it, Quader said. “Yet, the election was not voter-less and non-competitive though BNP did not participate in it. The party’s election boycott is part of a conspiracy against the country’s sovereignty.”

Despite the participation of all political parties, the voter turnout in many countries of the world is not seen above 40 per cent, the AL senior leader claimed.

“We know that about 25-30 per cent of voter turnout is seen in many countries, including in Europe. Sometimes it gets less than that,” the AL general secretary stated.

He further said a crisis is prevailing all over the world while in the past few days snowstorms have killed 30 people in the United States in a cold wave. Many counties have been affected by the snowstorm and the Russia-Ukraine war, Quader said.

The minister informed the media that the first session of the 12th Jatiya Sangsad (national parliament) will begin on 30 January. “We can claim that there is a democratic continuity in the country because of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s bravery. Even after the elections, terrorists identified under the leadership of BNP are hatching plots.”