Hasnat Abdullah, National Citizen Party’s (NCP) southern region chief organiser, on Saturday harshly criticised Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus for holding a meeting with BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman in London last June.
“After being appointed as the head of Bangladesh government following a mass uprising, this person went to London and bent his knee,” Hasnat said during a discussion titled “Constituent Assembly Election to Implement the July Charter.”
The event was held at the NCP’s temporary office in the city’s Banglamotor area.
During the discussion, Hasnat further stated, “Such an event in which the head of an interim government sits with the acting chairman of a political party for a press conference is a rare occurrence in the world.
“The chief adviser sold out the government in London on that very day,” he added.
Regarding the upcoming polls, Hasnat said, “We do not want to delay the election. We have no problem if it is held in November, December, or January, but the rules of the game must change.
“Any election must be a Constituent Assembly election, where the people play the role of players and the administration acts as the umpire. A consensus-based election on seat allocation and a midnight election are the same, and we do not want that.”
Criticising the administration, the NCP leader said, “In the Secretariat, people start lining up in Gulshan and Paltan at 4pm. This used to happen at the Awami League’s party office in Dhanmondi 32 and Gulistan. This is not a good sign for nationalist politics.”
The NCP leader warned, “If you think you can head toward a new state system while keeping the reasons for the August 5th uprising intact, you will face another mass resistance.”
Addressing the event, NCP’s Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwary said, “A Constituent Assembly election must be held before any other poll. There is no need to extend the time for the Consensus Commission. The Yunus government is being disloyal to the people regarding the July Charter issue.”
Patwary also criticised political party leaders who were present during the reading of the July Proclamation, when the families of the martyrs should have been there instead.
Patwary criticised the army, saying, “They hold weapons but do not know how to use them. They have no knowledge of the constitution. They only announce their existence by traveling abroad. They have built an ‘Aynaghar’ and there is no explanation for it.”
“The chief adviser’s legitimacy comes from the people. The July Proclamation should have been done with the people, not with political parties. Sixty per cent of the country wants reform. The number of BNP activists combined will not even be 60 per cent,” he added.