The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) will not only press for a clear roadmap to the upcoming parliamentary elections but also raise a range of other election-related issues during its discussions with interim government Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus.
Party sources said BNP leaders will press the Chief Adviser for a specific timeline for the parliamentary elections and a clear date for announcing the election roadmap.
If Professor Yunus fails to reassure the senior leadership with his response, the BNP is likely to return to the streets, potentially alongside its allies who had jointly campaigned against the ousted Awami League government.
The meeting between the BNP leaders and the Chief Adviser will be held at the State Guesthouse Jamuna in the capital at 12:00 pm.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will lead the party delegation in the discussion.
The BNP Standing Committee held a meeting on Tuesday before the meeting with the Chief Adviser and discussed the demand of seeking an announcement of a specific time for the election.
The BNP leaders think an uncertainty has been created due to different speeches of several advisers of the interim government. Apparently there is no visible preparation for holding the election from the government. The issue of demarcating the constituency remains unresolved.
The Election Commission (EC) has sent a proposal to the Law Ministry for redrawing the boundaries of the constituencies but it remains there untouched, the BNP leaders said.
The Chief Adviser promised to us that he has been conducting all the activities with a view to holding the election in December. In no way its alternative is acceptableSalahuddin Ahmed, BNP Standing Committee member
The former Awami League government shifted the NID service from the EC to the Home Ministry. Incumbent Election Commission proposed to keep the service at the EC which was approved by the advisory council as well. But no advancement has been made in this regard.
Besides this, the BNP leaders believe many of the enablers and beneficiaries of the past Awami League government are still active at different levels of the administration. Those who faced discrimination for a long time are not being posted.
BNP will raise those issues during the discussion too.
Given the overall situation, BNP policymakers think confusion has been created over holding the election due to different types of speeches of the Chief Adviser and some other advisers. BNP will seek clarity from the Chief Adviser over this.
Several leaders of the BNP said the Chief Adviser during the previous meeting assured them that all the activities of the government are being conducted with the view to holding the election in December this year. The assured BNP leaders requested the Chief Adviser to present the election roadmap properly before the nation so that the election commission could take preparation for this.
The BNP leaders said, being assured by the speech of the Chief Adviser, they stopped putting pressure on the government for holding the election “soon” or in “June-July” this year. But the party policymakers are now observing the Chief Adviser in his latest statements deviating from his previous stance. The Chief Adviser in several of his latest statements and interviews spoke about holding the parliamentary election between December this year and June 2026.
The BNP, however, demands the election this December. The party thinks a conspiracy has been going on to defer the election.
Speaking to Prothom Alo, BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed said, “The Chief Adviser promised to us that he has been conducting all the activities with a view to holding the election in December. In no way its alternative is acceptable. In addition, the statements made by some of the advisers about the elections and their posts on social media make it seem like there is an effort ongoing to delay the elections. In the meeting, we will ask when he will give the election roadmap and instructions to the Election Commission for the elections.”
3 months work-plan
Recently the BNP organising secretaries held a meeting about the party’s future work plans. There they primarily planned to remain active through various activities in the field in the next three months demanding a specific roadmap for the election.
The activities may include rallies, processions and foot marches, which will be organised at several steps including from the grassroots. The plan has been sent to the party’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman.
Sources said BNP has been planning a mass rally in Dhaka. The party may resort to such programmes if it does not find any clear decision regarding the election soon. At the same time, the party is thinking about organising programmes from the grassroots level and then a large gathering in Dhaka.
Following the meeting with the Chief Adviser, the party is also scheduled to hold a meeting with the National Consensus Commission Thursday afternoon.
The interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus took charge on 8 April last year after the fall of Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government in the face of the student-people uprising on 5 August.
One of the prime objectives of this government is to bring reforms in different sectors of the country. For this the government formed commissions for reforming the constitution, electoral system, public administration, the police, Anti-Corruption Commission, and judiciary in the first week of October last year. In February this year, the six commissions published their full reports.
The National Consensus Commission, formed with the heads of the six reform commissions and Professor Muhammad Yunus, has been working now.
The National Consensus Commission started its activities formally through a meeting with the political parties on 15 February.
A charter (July charter) will be prepared after reaching a consensus with the political parties about the reform initiatives.
The next parliamentary election will be held under the basis of this July charter.