BNP presses for December polls in talks with Chief Adviser
PARBATTA NEWS DESK
The BNP has reiterated its demand that the next general election be held by December, warning that any delay could risk a return to autocratic rule.
The party raised the issue during talks with Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus at his official residence in Dhaka on Saturday.
“If the election is delayed, it will open the door for autocracy,” said BNP leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain after the meeting. He also called for the removal of two student advisers and the National Security Adviser, citing concerns over neutrality.
Prof Yunus later held separate meetings with Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP).
Jamaat pushed for an election timeline, as well as reforms and trials of Awami League leaders for their alleged role in the July uprising. It suggested that polls could be held either before or after Ramadan, depending on progress.
NCP demanded reconstitution of the Election Commission and local polls before the national election. It also called for previous elections under Sheikh Hasina to be declared void.
All three parties expressed support for Prof Yunus and called for free, fair, and peaceful elections.
Yunus, under pressure following protests and slow reform progress, reaffirmed his commitment to holding elections between December and June.
BNP said it never sought Yunus’s resignation and called for reforms to be based on cross-party consensus. Jamaat and NCP raised concerns over the fairness of the current electoral landscape.
The Consensus Commission is expected to finalise its recommendations by mid-July, followed by a “July Charter”. Trials over the July killings are set to begin later this month.
The Chief Adviser is scheduled to meet representatives of more than ten political parties today.
