BNP Vice Chairman Shamsuzzaman Dudu has said the former Awami League-led government would not be facing its current political situation had it allowed free and fair elections in the country.
Speaking at a symbolic youth rally organised by the Bangladesh Nagorik Odhikar Andolon in front of the National Press Club on Friday, Dudu said, “The most urgent need in Bangladesh right now is a credible and acceptable election. In pursuit of such an election, countless young lives have been lost over 16 to 17 years of protest and struggle”.
Shamsuzzaman Dudu alleged that the ‘fascist’ Awami League government has stripped the people of their voting rights and laundered the nation’s wealth abroad. He further claimed that the ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, whom he described as autocratic, is currently in India plotting fresh conspiracies, including plans for covert attacks.”
He warned that any new attempts to undermine or derail the electoral process would not be tolerated. “If they conspire again, the people will not remain silent. They will resist together.”
Dudu, a former lawmaker, also stated that the announcement of a fair election would help restore normalcy in the country and return voting rights to the people. “Through that election, the people will bring the BNP back to power,” he claimed.
He went on to say that BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman, the eldest son of party founder and late President Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, would lead the nation in the future. “Under his leadership, and with the people’s support, Bangladesh will move forward. Democracy will be restored through the protection of our independence and sovereignty,” Dudu added.
He reiterated that both Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman have repeatedly called for restoring voting rights. “The Awami League ignored those calls, and that’s why they’re now facing such consequences,” he said. “Had they held free elections and preserved democracy, this downfall would not have come.”
The event was presided over by the organisation’s president, M Jahangir Alam, and conducted by its member secretary, Engineer Mofazzal Hossain Hridoy.
