BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday criticised Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami for skipping the National Consensus Commission meeting held on Tuesday, suggesting the party feared losing political relevance ahead of the national election scheduled for next Ramadan.
“Many were not happy with the meeting’s outcome because the election poses a threat to their current standing. As long as there is no election, they remain relevant,” Fakhrul said at a programme organised by the Dhaka North City Unit, BNP.
He expressed confidence that once the election is held, the party that enjoys popular support—referring to the BNP—will return to power.
In a veiled reference to Jamaat, Fakhrul said the party is anxious about how much influence it will retain post-election. “That is why they were disheartened and chose not to attend the meeting with the Consensus Commission yesterday (Tuesday),” he said.
The event was held at the Sunbeams School premises to launch the Turag unit of Dhaka North BNP’s new membership form distribution and renewal campaign.
According to media reports, Jamaat-e-Islami skipped Tuesday’s National Consensus Commission discussions with political parties as a form of protest against the outcome of a recent London meeting between Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus and BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman.
The party reportedly conveyed to the commission that it felt sidelined after Prof Yunus and Tarique Rahman met in London on June 13 and jointly announced that the election would be held in February next year.
Fakhrul said the meeting was crucial, as it took place during a tense standoff between the interim government and political parties over the previously proposed election timeline in April.
Calling the meeting a “rare and historic” moment, Fakhrul noted that both Prof Yunus and Tarique had made concessions on their earlier positions and reached a consensus to hold the election in February—just a week before Ramadan.
“This is what we call statesmanship. Without creating division or conflict, these two leaders have opened a path to a peaceful election,” Fakhrul said.
He then asked the audience, “Do we like this? If so, give a round of applause for Tarique Rahman and Prof Yunus,” prompting cheers and claps from party leaders and supporters.