There will be a ‘constitutional crisis’ in the country if UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s initiative to broker talks between the two major political parties fails, thinks BNP Standing Committee member Rafiqul Islam Mia.
“People are concerned about the next general elections. Even the UN Secretary General has spoken to the two leaders over phone and asked for dialogues to hold acceptable polls with participation of all parties,” he said on Monday.
“But we think there might be a constitutional crisis if Ban Ki-moon’s proposal for talks fails,” Rafiqul told reporters after offering prayers at the grave of Ziaur Rahman, founder of the BNP, at capital Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.
Amid the stand-off between the ruling Awami League and main opposition BNP, the UN Secretary General had spoken to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Leader of the Opposition Khaleda Zia over phone on Friday in a bid to get a dialogue started between Bangladesh’s two leading political coalitions.
The ruling party says there is no scope for restoration of the caretaker arrangement after the 15th Constitutional Amendment. It wants parliamentary polls under supervision of the present government.
The BNP, however, has been on the street saying it will not join the election unless the caretaker government system is restored to conduct the polls and threatened to intensify its agitation to back the demand.
Rafiqul Islam Mia on Monday said, “The caretaker government provision was a settled issue. Three elections were held under it. Ruling Awami League with the power of having a majority in Parliament has annulled the provision without taking the people’s mandate.”
The country is going through a political crisis because of the Awami League, he alleged.
Now they must take the initiative to clear this mess, he said. “We support the United Nations Secretary General’s call. We want free and fair elections with all political parties taking part in it.”
The senior BNP leader also thanked Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus for supporting the opposition’s demand for a caretaker government.
On Aug 22, at a press briefing, the former Grameen Bank Managing Director had said that no general election in Bangladesh could be fair and credible unless it was overseen by a non-party caretaker government.
Rafiqul also expressed dismay over the ruling party leaders for their harsh criticism of Yunus for his remarks.
Source: Bd news24