Addressing a public meeting in Rangpur, BNP chief asks govt to place and pass CG bill in Parliament
Declaring most emphatically that BNP would not participate in any election under the Awami League government, opposition leader Khaleda Zia on Sunday called upon the ruling party to initiate a bill on a non-party neutral caretaker administration at parliament for conducting the next poll. “You still have time. Bring a bill on a neutral and non-party caretaker government and pass it at parliament so that we all can participate in the ensuing parliamentary election. Before that there will be no dialogue,” she told the government from a mammoth public meeting at Rangpur Zilla School ground.
“The dialogue could be held only to determine who will head the non-party government,” she said.
Amid frequently raised full-throated slogans by thousands of party workers praising the opposition leader, the BNP chief Khaleda Zia, who is also a former Prime Minister of Bangladesh made it absolutely clear that her party along with all other organizations of the 18-party opposition alliance would not take part in any election with Awami League in power. “There will be no election under Sheikh Hasina as it is not possible to hold a free, fair and credible election under Awami League government,” an unrelenting opposition leader told the cheering crowd adding that the “demand for a neutral and non-party caretaker government is not just mine; it was in fact Sheikh Hasina’s demand as well before the last election.”
“AL did not take part in the election scheduled on January 22, 2007 arguing that the election under former Chief Justice KM Hasan would not be neutral, so now there is no question for us to take part in the election under Sheikh Hasina who is a party chief,” Khaleda Zia argued saying: “You know, basically the demand for CG was raised by Hasina herself.”
The opposition leader said that the president of the ruling Awami League Sheikh Hasina raised the same demand for a neutral and non-party caretaker government when we were in power back in 1995. “During that time, her party observed a total of 173 days of general strike (hartal) in the country and ally was then Jamaat-e-Islami. But now they are terming Jamaat a party of war criminals,” Khaleda Zia said.
Wearing a neatly pressed light-colored pink sari, the BNP chairperson, surrounded by a host of party’s central and local leaders, said that they have now only one demand – holding of next election under a non-party and neutral caretaker government in the country. “With this demand if necessary we will take to the streets,” she said and asked the crowd: “Will you join us?” “Yes, yes,” the jubilant crowd thundered in one voice.
The opposition leader said that if the next election is held under a non-party and neutral caretaker government, her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the 18-party opposition alliance would come to power and appealed to the people to vote for them for protecting the country, continuing the pace of development and keeping the trend of democracy uninterrupted.
On the occasion of Khaleda Zia’s public meeting, the entire Rangpur city wore a festive look with thousands of multicolored banners and festoons with various pro-BNP and opposition slogans hung all over. Earlier, tens of thousands of people from all over Rangpur and neighbouring districts came in group processions carrying placards and chanting slogans and heard the opposition leader defying rains.
Described as the “biggest ever” in the history of this northern town, the rally spilled over to all major streets adjacent to the meeting venue with a turn out of a huge number of people. Though the people started to gather at the venue amid scorching sun since 10 am, it started to rain heavily minutes after Khaleda Zia began her 45-minute speech at 4.45 pm. Ignoring heavy downpour, thousands of people were glued to Khaleda’s speech.
Meanwhile, hundreds of welcoming arches were erected through the entire route of the motorcade of the opposition leader from Bogra to Rangpur with portraits of late BNP founder and President Ziaur Rahman, Khaleda Zia and their son Tarique Rahman, who is a senior vice-chairman of the party and now living in exile in London. Along the route, people lined up and greeted Khaleda Zia. She smiled and waved back at them.
The BNP chairperson dubbed the existing Election Commission “spineless” and asked it to take some strong steps. She also warned the EC not to hold any one-party election in the country. The BNP chief also asked the police and other law-enforcing agencies not to work for any individual or political party with a reminder that “the tenure of the present government is only three months.”
“The government claims that it has done a lot of development work for the people. Then why are they worried to contest the election in a level playing field under a caretaker government?” she asked. She also criticized the government for its failure to stop border killings saying that the “people on our border have no security under this government that failed to ensure justice for the killing of Felani.”
Underscoring the need for saving the people and the country and eradication of corruption, the opposition leader promised that if voted to power her party and the 18-party alliance would establish what she described as a “good government.” In this connection, she said: “No one – even if that person belongs to my own family – would be spared if found involved in any kind of corruption.”
She expressed hope that the next election would be held under a non-party and neutral caretaker government and by coming to power BNP would initiate a what she called “a politics of change” in the country.
The BNP chief said if voted to power, her government would control terrorism and corruption with a heavy hand and restore rule of law making sure that the judiciary of the country is functioning effectively. She accused the present government of being partisan while appointing people and assured that her government’s employment policy would be based only on merit.
The BNP chief charged the government with letting loose repression on the leaders and workers of the opposition parties and demanded immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners. The government has also passed one after another anti-people laws which, she said, would rebound on the very makers of these laws.
Convener of the Rangpur district unit of BNP Mozaffar Hosain presided over the meeting which was also addressed, among others, by LDP Chairman Col (Rtd) Oli Ahmed, BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, standing committee member Mirza Abbas, Kallyan Party chairman Generel (Rtd) Muhammaad Ibrahim, Khelafat Majlish Ameer Maulana Mohammad Ishaq, BJP Chairman Andalib Rahman Partha, Jammat central leader Shamsul Islam, and BNP organizing secretary Asadul Habib Dulu.
UNB adds: Khaleda told the Election Commission: “Not to hold a one-sided election. You can’t do that,” she said. If you act as the yes men of the government, you will have to go.
She asked the police, civil and other administration officials “not to assist the current regime if it tries to hold a one-sided election.”
“Don’t obey the government’s illegal orders. If you carry out the illegal orders, people will identify you. Keep it in mind that this government will go out in three months after the expiry of its term,” she warned.
-With The Independent input
