Resolve disputes, move towards election: Mirza Fakhrul to interim govt
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has called upon the interim government to end the ongoing disputes over the July National Charter and its implementation recommendations, and to focus instead on holding the parliamentary elections.
Addressing the government, he said, “What’s done is done. Please resolve these issues so that we can all move forward together towards the election. Let’s work for the welfare of the people—take that path.”
He made these remarks while speaking at the inaugural session of the national conference of Ganosamhati Andolan, held at the engineers’ institution auditorium in the capital on Friday afternoon.
Earlier in the morning, speaking at an event marking the founding anniversary of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) at the National Press Club, Mirza Fakhrul said, “The interim government and the National Consensus Commission have betrayed the nation and its people.”
The BNP has been raising questions since Tuesday, when the National Consensus Commission handed over its recommendations to the interim government regarding implementation of the July Charter.
The party claims that the “notes of dissent” it submitted were excluded from the draft order’s annexure, which mentions only the reform proposals.
The BNP also alleges that the final version contains matters not discussed in the commission meetings, and it has objected to holding a referendum before the general election.
At Friday’s event, Mirza Fakhrul expressed hope that the current crisis would pass. “The crisis created by this interim government and the Consensus Commission will be overcome. The people of this country never lose; they have never been defeated and never will be.”
He emphasised unity among all political parties to resist any conspiracy, saying, “Whatever plots are being hatched against us, we must defeat them. We may have different parties, opinions, and paths, but there is one thing we have always shared—a commitment to Bangladesh. There is no doubt about that. I am not a pessimist in politics, because I believe that justice will triumph, truth will prevail.”
Extending his best wishes to Ganosamhati Andolan, which has been jointly campaigning with the BNP to remove the Awami League from power, Mirza Fakhrul said, “Just as we stood with you in the past, we will continue to do so. But you must move forward from the space you’ve created for yourselves—no one else will do that for you.”
The national conference of Ganosamhati Andolan was inaugurated by Maria Sultana, wife of July Uprising martyr Najmul Kazi, and Farzana Jahan, wife of martyr Omar Nurul Absar, jointly releasing doves.
The event began with the national anthem, the hoisting of the national flag by the party’s chief coordinator Zonayed Saki, and the party flag by executive coordinator Abul Hasan Rubel.
A minute of silence was observed in honour of the martyrs of the July Uprising.
Other speakers included Ariful Islam Adeeb (senior joint convener, National Citizen Party-NCP); Mujibur Rahman Manju (chairman, Amar Bangladesh Party); Saiful Haque (general secretary, Biplobi Workers Party); Mahrukh Mohiuddin (organiser, Women’s Political Rights Forum); Sheikh Rafiqul Islam Babul (chairman, Bhasani Janashakti Party); Syed Ehsanul Huda (chairman, Bangladesh Jatiya Dal and coordinator, 12-party alliance); Fariduzzaman Farhad (chairman, National People’s Party and coordinator, Jatiyatabadi Samomona Jote); and Masud Rana (coordinator, Socialist Party of Bangladesh–Marxist).
With a pledge to build an equitable, inclusive, and dignified Bangladesh for farmers, workers, and marginalised people, Ganosamhati Andolan is holding its 5th national conference, where delegates and observers from across the country will elect the party’s new leadership over three days.