Although he declined to make any comment about the High Court verdict that declared illegal registration of Jamaat-e-Islam, BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday said his party is always against banning any political party. “I don’t want to talk about the High Court judgment as it’s a sub-judice matter but BNP is never ever in favour of banning any political party. Politics should be countered through political process,” he told a protest rally.
Dhaka city (South) unit of BNP arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club demanding immediate arrest and punishment of the killer of Dhaka city 58 ward BNP leader Jasim Uddin.
On Thursday, the High Court declared illegal the registration of Jamaat-e-Islam as a political party. A larger HC bench, headed by Justice M Moazzam Husain, delivered the judgment on a writ petition in the form of public interest litigation challenging the validity of the Election Commission decision that had given registration to Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI) as a political party in 2008.
Fakhrul alleged that the government is conspiring to annihilate the opposition to hold a lopsided election.
“Having no scope to implement its evil design, the government has taken steps to ban political parties.”
Mentioning that Awami League had established one-party rule, Baksal, in 1972-75 banning all political parties, he said they are now planning to do the same in a different style.
The BNP leader alleged that the ruling party is trying to cling to power by using the Election Commission, but people will foil their all plots.
Fakhrul alleged that Jasim Uddin was killed at Hajaribagh at the behest of the government. Voicing his disappointment over the police inaction to track down the killers of Jasim, the BNP leader demanded the government immediately arrest the killers of Jasim and mete out punishment to them.
Chaired by BNP Dhaka city unit convener Sadeque Hossain Khoka, the programme was addressed, among others, by BNP standing committee members Mirza Abbas, BNP joint secretary general Barkatullah Bulu and Jatiyatabadi Swechchhasebak Dal president Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel. – UNB
