Dhaka, Dec 13 – BNP has sought Election Commission’s decision on using its jailed chairperson Khaleda Zia’s portrait in posters of the candidates of its 10 allies, who are contesting the 11th parliamentary elections with the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’ symbol.BNP sent a letter, signed by Chairman of its National Election Conducting Committee Nazrul Islam Khan, to Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda on Thursday in this regard.
A BNP delegation, led by its Vice-chairman Selima Rahman, submitted the letter to the EC in the afternoon.
The letter said BNP and 10 other registered political parties are contesting the forthcoming general election under an alliance and the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’ was allocated among candidates of the partners.
“We seek your decision about printing posters with the portrait of the alliance chief and BNP chairperson by other parties of the combine except for BNP,” the letter reads.
Besides, BNP sent several more letters, signed by Nazrul Islam Khan, to the CEC placing a set of demands.
In a letter, BNP demanded an immediate stop to ‘harassment’ of its leaders and activists by law enforcement agencies and attacks on them by ‘Awami League men’, and the release of detained party men for the sake of arranging a fair, acceptable and participatory election.
It also mentioned a number of attacks carried out targeting its leaders and activists and programmes in different places across the country.
In a separate letter, BNP urged the Election Commission to ensure police protection for the Jatiya Oikyafront candidates and security for its active leaders and activists ahead of the election.
In another letter, the party claimed that its website, bnpbangladesh.com, has been blocked, urging the Commission to issue directives to the authorities concerned to reopen it.
After the submission of the letters, BNP joint secretary general Moazzem Hossain Alal, also a delegation member, told reporters that it seems that police and other law enforcement agencies are their competitors in the election as they have been arresting their leaders and activists since the election campaign began.
“It seems to us that Awami League is not the rival of the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’; rather police and law enforcement agencies appear to be our competitors,” he added. – UNB
