BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday said their party even will not join any talks on the next parliamentary polls until the Awami League government quits power.
“I think there’ll be no talks until the Awami League government resigns,” he told a press conference at BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office.
The BNP leader came up with the remarks as journalists drew his attention to a reported decision of the Awami League Central Working Committee to make all-out efforts to bring BNP to the next parliamentary election.
Fakhrul renewed their party’s stance that BNP will not join the next polls under the current government.
“Our position on the next polls is clear. There’s no question of holding an election if the Awami League regime does not resign and power is handed over to a completely neutral government. We won’t go to the polls, if Sheikh Hasina remains in power,” he viewed.
Fakhrul said the government must meet two conditions to bring BNP to the next polls. “The first condition is that they (govt) must resign and then they must hand over power to a neutral non-partisan government.
He said a non-party neutral government will reconstitute the Election Commission for conducting the polls based on public opinions and thus a government and parliament will be formed representing the country’s people.
Sought his comment on Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader’s comment that the opposition parties would be given a scope to hold meetings and rallies, Fakhrul said Awami League is a party of ‘frauds’.
“They (AL leaders) are used to say like that…but they’ll do whatever they need to do. This is the character of Awami League that they don’t keep their words. They have been deceiving people from the beginning since the country’s independence,” he said.
The BNP leader said the ruling party leaders talk about democracy like gentlemen, but they do not allow even to hold a milad and doa mahfil and Eid reunion let alone a meeting and a rally. “They attack an Eid reunion and A milad mahfil. What can you expect from them? “
He strongly condemned and protested the attack on the house of party standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain in Daudkandi on Saturday, and said the government has started resorting to terrorism again to hang onto power.
Fakhrul said their standing committee’s senior member Khandaker Mosharraf went to his residence in Daukandi on Saturday to exchange Eid greetings with the local leaders and workers.
As he came out of his residence to join an invitation at Titas, the BNP leader alleged that Awami League ‘cadres’ attacked the house and Mosharraf’s companions with sticks, brickbats and batons.
“We think it’s a physical attack on Dr Mosharraf. The attack was so intense that the party workers took Mosharraf to the house and closed the gate. Even then, the Awami cadres hurled brick chips and stones like rain towards the house”, Fakhrul said.
Later, he said police brought the situation under control and helped Mosharraf to come out of his house.
“He (Mosharraf) is the senior leader of our standing committee. We consider the attack on him as an attack on the standing committee as well as on our party. We can’t take it lightly. This attack has proved that there is no change in their character. Rather, they have resorted to extreme terrorism with fresh vigour to eliminate and suppress BNP and the opposition,” the BNP leader observed.
He demanded the government arrest those involved in the attack on Moshharf’s house and bring them to justice.
Fakhrul also slammed the government for hiking the price of soybean oil further for what he said protecting the interests of corrupt ruling party business syndicates.
