Opposition BNP on Monday alleged that the Prime Minister has violated the election code of conduct by forcing Awami League rebel candidate Jahangir Alam to stay off the race in the election to Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) slated for July 6.
“With tears in his eyes, Jahangir said he has decided to pull out of the race as per the directive of the Prime Minister. Had he willingly quit the polls race, he wouldn’t have cried. So, the Election Commission should consider it as a violation of the election code of conduct,” said senior BNP leader Nazrul Islam Khan.
The BNP leader came up with the allegation while addressing a discussion titled ‘Tarique Rahman: Bangladesh’s sovereignty and democracy’ organised by University Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh at the Jatiya Press Club.
Earlier on Sunday, addressing a press conference at Gazipur district Awami League office, Jahangir Alam announced in public that he would stay off the race in the GCC election.
He also promised to work for the ruling party-led 14-party alliance-backed candidate Ajmat Ullah Khan.
Nazrul Islam Khan, also a BNP standing committee member, said people have turned away from the current regime due to its misdeeds, misrule and corruption.
Referring to the successes of the BNP-backed candidates in the recently held local body polls, he said the ruling party candidates will suffer debacle in any election in the future even if BNP does not participate in it.
The BNP policymaker came down hard on the Prime Minister for her remarks that if any caretaker government is given charge for an interim period it will try to stay in office until the doomsday, and said there had been no crisis in the country under the rule of lawful caretaker governments.
“The caretaker government about which you are scared now was the outcome of your (PM) movement. You in advance had pledged to legitimise their activities. “We didn’t attend their oath taking ceremony. So, it’s useless to scare us of bugaboo.”
Addressing a discussion meeting of Awami League on Friday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called upon BNP chief Khaleda Zia not to advocate for a non-party caretaker government as it may try to cling to power until the doomsday sending them to jail.
Nazrul said it has been proved that all the allegations brought against BNP vice chairman Tarique Rahman are false and politically motivated as the present government nor that of the 1/11 one could prove any of it .
He called upon the government to reinstate the caretaker government system for ensuring a free and fair election, or else he warned, they will intensify their ongoing movement to force the regime to accept their demand.
Former Dhaka University Vice Chancellor Prof Emajuddin Ahmed Pro-VC Prof AFM Yusuf Haider, BNP joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi and teachers of different universities spoke at the programme.
Source: UNB Connect
