Raising question on whether election or reform first is purposive: Tarique Rahman

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman on Monday said those who are making evil efforts to mislead the people by raising the question, whether election is needed first or reform, they have different purposes.

“BNP has no discord with the interim government over the reform programmes. Those, who are making ill efforts to mislead the people by raising the question, whether election is needed first or reforms, have different purposes,” he said.

Tarique Rahman was addressing virtually the annual general meeting of Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) held at the National Press Club, with DUJ president Md Shahidul Islam in the chair.

Recalling that the BNP was the first to place a 27-point state reform proposal in 2022, he stated that the party later announced 31-point proposals after holding talks with other democratic political parties.

BNP’s 31-point proposals included forming a media commission comprising retired judges of the Supreme Court and experienced journalists.

“The interim government has formed a media reform commission. So, BNP has no disagreement with the interim government over the reform programme,” he said.

Tarique Rahman expressed that the BNP believes that reform is an ongoing process and it is not a matter to end. If anyone initiates a reform, another one takes the process ahead.

Without qualitative improvement of democratic political culture, reform cannot be effective, he pointed out.

Tarique Rahman said if people’s hassle of everyday life is not removed, the cherished outcome of reforms cannot be achieved.

The BNP acting chairman demanded a free, fair and neutral election within a logical time side by side with reforms.

He further said it is a reality that the mass uprising happened not only for an election. On the other hand, there is another cruel reality that the previous Awami League regime was able to establish fascism by forming a government, repeatedly without holding elections to deprive people from their political and other rights.

“In democratic political practice to establish people’s rights, election is of course a prime issue. It won’t be a realistic political thinking that if election is considered as the purpose of going to power for a single party only. Rather people get scope to practice their political rights through an election,” he said.

At the same time, the relationship of ownership between the people and the state is established through practicing voting rights, he added.

Tarique Rahman underscored the need for empowering people politically to keep a state and a government away from the clutch of fascism.

BNP standing committee member Professor AZM Zahid Hossain, Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general Mia Golam Parwar, BNP’s senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, joint secretary general Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie, Jamaat’s Dhaka South City unit Ameer Nurul Islam Bulbul, Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) secretary general Kader Gani Chowdhury, former Jatiya Press Club president Kamal Uddin Sabuj, former BFUJ president M Abdullah, DUJ general secretary Khurshid Alam and journalist leaders- poet Abdul Hye Sikder and Jahangir Alam Pradhan addressed the programme.

DUJ joint secretary Didarul Alam Didar, treasurer Khandaker Alamgir Hossain and organising secretary Md Sayeed Khan conducted the event.

Tarique Rahman said they want to build such a country where the state will not stay indifferent in incidents like Sagar-Runi murder.

About the repression on journalists during the previous AL regime, he said at least six journalists were killed during the July uprising. Around 2000 people including students were killed in the mass movement while around 400 leaders and workers of BNP were killed among them, he added.

Tarique Rahman said BNP is making its all-out efforts to stand by the families of the journalists who were killed in the movement.

The BNP acting chairman urged the newspaper and media authorities to provide jobs to those journalists who lost their jobs or stayed unemployed for long due to political vengeance of the previous Awami League regime.

He said journalists, writers and intellectuals may have dissidence and this is the beauty of democratic political culture.

But during the previous AL regime, dissidents were suppressed severely, he stated.

Objectivity was not maintained in journalism in maximum cases during the AL regime, Tarique Rahman added.