Dhaka: The ruling Awami League has rejected Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) demand for holding the next national election under a neutral poll-time administration.
Party insiders say the next parliamentary election will be held as per the constitution of the country and any illogical demand of the BNP will not be entertained.
The AL has made its stance clear on the issue a day as the BNP-led 20-party alliance at a meeting on Monday decided to place its demands, including a neutral poll-time administration, to the Election Commission (EC) during talks with the commission.
The EC has already started talks with registered political parties to have their opinions in holding the next national election in a free, fair and credible manner.
At present, there are 40 political registered political parties in the country. The EC has already cancelled the registration of Jamaat-e-Islami, a key ally of BNP.
The BNP-led 20-party alliance boycotted the January 5 national election as the polls were not held under a caretaker government.
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia shifted from her earlier stance on caretaker government.
She now wants a neutral poll-time administration instead of caretaker government.
“I won’t say that a caretaker government is a must but the polls have to be held under a neutral administration. No matter what its name is. The election will have to be free and fair with the participation of all political parties,” she said recently.
“But we will not make any compromise on the constitutional provision. The next election will be held as per the constitution,” AL presidium member Faruk Khan told the daily sun.
He also said they will request the EC to go by the constitution in arranging the next national polls.
Ruling party leaders also fear that conspiracies are being hatched ahead of the next parliamentary election.
They say BNP is playing dirty games over the verdict on the 16th Amendment to the constitution while many are speaking on the review of the 13th amendment.
The Supreme Court in May in 2011 declared illegal the constitutional provision which mandates an elected government to transfer power to an unelected caretaker administration to oversee a new general election during its three-month term.
AL advisory council member Tofail Ahmed said, “The caretaker government system is now in the grave. If anybody takes an attempt to restore the system, his hands will be burnt.”
“If anybody thinks that caretaker government provision will be restored again, they are living in a fools’ paradise,” Tofail, also the industries minister, added.
AL insiders said they will not deviate from the existing electoral policy.
The BNP has to participate in the next polls accepting the incumbent Prime Minister as the head of the government, they said.
If the BNP does not want to go by the constitution, the government will arrange the polls without BNP, they said.
