The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party has hinted it might not join the current session of parliament as the party thought its lawmakers would not get much time in the house to speak. ‘This time we may not get much time to speak in the house about the government’s failures and misdeeds like the last budget session when we did not get much time for general debate on the national budget. So, it would not be useful to join the session,’ a BNP lawmaker told New Age on Thursday.
Opposition leader Khaleda Zia on Wednesday night conveyed her party’s decision to the opposition chief whip Zainul Abdin Farroque on its stand on joining the session, the party sources said.
The ninth parliament sat for its 19th session on Thursday with the opposition lawmakers staying out.
Earlier on the day, Farroque told New Age that the BNP lawmakers were not going to attend opening day’s sitting and the party’s parliamentary party would later decide whether to join the session or not.
In reply to a question, Farroque could not say precisely when the BNP’s parliamentary party would meet.
He said the party chairperson Khaleda Zia would remain busy with her scheduled organisational activities and public meetings in divisional cities in September-October.
Farroque said during a break in her programme, BNP parliamentary meeting could take place, he added.
A lawmaker of BNP told New Age that the party chairperson did not think joining the current parliament session would be useful.
He hinted that there were little chances that the party lawmakers would join the session. He said the party thought it would not be wise for the party to join the session if the Awami League and BNP could not reach consensus over an election-time government.
‘Because, it might hamper the preparations for the final phase of movement as the opposition lawmakers would have to spend time [in the house] without any output,’ the lawmaker said.
The BNP-led ‘18-party’ alliance is expected to go for ‘non-stop’ action programmes in the last week of October or first week of November if the government did not accept their demand for a ‘non-party’ caretaker government.
However, in case there are positive developments like negotiations between the Awami League and BNP over the polls-time government, the opposition would join the parliament session, the party sources said.
-With New Age input
