BNP won’t participate in election without Khaleda Zia

Senior Correspondent: BNP joint senior secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said their party will not participate in the 11th general election except the party chairperson Khaleda Zia.

He said, “BNP will participate in the next general election with the leadership of its chairperson Khaleda Zia. It’s impossible to take part in any general election without the party chief Khaleda Zia.”

The BNP leader came up with the statement in a press conference at the party’s Nayapaltan central office on Sunday.

He said, “Currently, BNP’s manifesto is party chief Khaleda Zia’s release, dissolving the parliament and the general election under a neutral and non-party government.”

Rizvi also told the ruling government that your dream of holding another election like January 5 will not be fulfilled. People have started to take preparations for giving you a befitting reply.

He also alleged that though BNP chairperson has seriously fallen sick in jail, she is not being given better treatment.

In reaction to Awami League (AL) general secretary Obaidul Quader’s speech “There is no relation between election and Khaleda Zia’s release”, the BNP leader said, “There is a great relation between the two things. It is obviously a deep conspiracy to keep away the popular leader from election. His (Quader) speech indicates of holding a compulsive one-sided election.”

Voicing deep concern over the growing incidents of extrajudicial killing, the BNP leader said it seems law enforcers are on a killing spree.

“A killing spree is going on in the name of gunfights across the country as at least seven people were killed over the last three days,” said Rizvi.

He also said the law enforcers are now apparently on extrajudicial-killing spree and they are killing people like insects.

The BNP leader also said though the local and international human rights organisations are airing their worry about the extrajudicial killing, the government is least bothered about it.

Rizvi said the government’s main motive behind the extrajudicial killing is to keep people scared always in a bid to prolong its ‘misrule’.

He said the government is also trying to suppress people so that they do not dare protest against the government’s ‘evil design’ to hold another unilateral election. “We strongly condemn the incidents of extrajudicial killing and demand the government stop immediately such killings in the name of gunfight.”

The BNP leader also demanded proper investigation into all the incidents of extrajudicial killing took place under the current government.

He said the government has now taken initiatives to repair roads and highways to create a scope for the ruling party leaders to plunder public money before the Eid-ul-Fitr.

He also questioned how the government will complete the repair works on the roads and highways before the eid as per the Road Transport and Bridges Minister’s assertion when it could not be done for a long time.

“It’s not understandable that by which ghost of the Arabian fairytale the government will repair all the roads and highways before the eid since it has left people in miseries round the year,” Rizvi said.

The BNP leader alleged that people are passing through a bad time in Ramadan due to frequent power cuts across the country and gas and water crises in the capital.

risingbd/Dhaka/May 20, 2018/Reza/A K Azad