Polls in Bangladesh impossible without reforms, warns NCP chief
text_fields
Dhaka: Bangladesh’s National Citizen Party (NCP) Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwary has declared that the country’s general elections, scheduled for February next year, cannot be held until political reforms are completed, local media reported.
Speaking at the National Youth Conference organised to mark International Youth Day at the Krishibid Institution in Dhaka’s Farmgate, Patwary warned that if elections were conducted without implementing the reforms, “this government will have to go to the grave and return the bodies of my brothers who were martyred and gave their blood for reforms,” according to leading Bangladeshi daily Jugantor.
The event was also attended by Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Joint Secretary General Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie and Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdullah Mohammad Taher.
NCP Convener Nahid Islam stressed that while the party made concessions with the July Declaration, there would be “absolutely no compromise” on the July Charter. “The equation is not yet complete. Those who think they’ve figured it out already are on the wrong track. We made concessions last year, and in the July Declaration, but in the July Charter, we will not give even a one per cent concession,” he said.
He added that the NCP would only contest the elections once the objectives of the July Charter were achieved. “We want elections, but there must be change. There will be no compromise on the July Charter. No political party will be able to come to power without implementing its pledges.”
While the BNP has welcomed the decision to hold the elections in February 2026, Jamaat-e-Islami, though agreeing with the timing, has demanded the introduction of the proportional representation (PR) system for both houses of parliament, warning of a movement to press for the demand.
Patwary also targeted Bangladesh’s Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), warning that the NCP would vandalise its offices if the agency failed to function properly. “This intelligence agency operates with public money. But the public cannot know how much they spend. They have no accountability, no responsibility, no transparency. Their only job is to intimidate people,” he alleged.
“If such efforts continue, we will not only break the interrogation rooms but also the DGFI headquarters. We have endured enough. If DGFI is to exist in Bangladesh, it must be reformed,” he cautioned.
Bangladesh has faced political uncertainty over the next general elections since the Awami League government of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was toppled during violent protests last year. The parties that allied with Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus to remove Hasina are now divided over reform measures and the timing of the polls.
With IANS inputs