BNP begins identifying past election manipulators ahead of parliamentary polls

As the party wants the next national election to be held in a free and fair manner, the BNP has begun preparing a list of controversial teachers and other officials who served as returning officers, presiding officers, assistant presiding officers and polling officers, and were involved in vote rigging during the national and local body elections over the past 15 years.

Speaking to UNB, several BNP leaders revealed that in a recent virtual meeting with the party's organisational secretaries, the Acting Chairman of the BNP instructed that the list be compiled and submitted to Upazila Election Offices in each district.

They said the move has been taken to ensure that these people are excluded from voter registration or election management duties in future polls.

The BNP leaders said they have also instructed their party leaders and activists across the country to remain vigilant as the Election Commission (EC) launched the voter list updating process nationwide, to ensure that the job is done properly and fairly.

Besides, they said, Tarique Rahman also instructed them to expedite the formation of committees for expired party units at the district, city, upazila, thana, municipality, and union levels across the country. This ensures that the party can be strengthened before the upcoming national election.

The BNP leaders said the party high command is working on reorganising the party with sincere and clean-image leaders to face future challenges and overcome the electoral hurdles.

A BNP standing committee member, wishing to remain anonymous, said the party believes the next election may not be easy for them due to emerging factors.

"First of all, the government seems to be unnecessarily buying time in the name of reforms. So, we're preparing to exert pressure on the government to complete the election-related reforms and arrange the election either by August or November," he said.

Secondly, the BNP leader said the leaders of the Anti-Discrimination movement are trying to form a political party with the backing of the interim government. "We don't have any objection if anyone from any party forms a party, but it should be done through the political process without government support," he said.

The BNP leader said if students form a party with government support and have some of their leaders as advisers in the interim government, they may try to influence the election in various ways. "So, we're making various strategies to prevent vote rigging and other irregularities during the next election."

As part of their strategies, the BNP leader said they have started compiling a list of controversial teachers, bank officials, and government employees to prevent them from being involved in election duties.

He said they have started to suspect that the government is not working impartially, which is a matter of concern for them and could prompt them to launch a movement demanding the election be held under a neutral government.

During an interview with BBC Bangla, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said on Wednesday that a neutral government would be needed if the current interim government fails to maintain its impartiality.

"If representatives of these students are part of this government, neutrality cannot be maintained. If they think they can hold elections with their representatives in the government, political parties will not accept it," Fakhrul said.

Later, on Thursday, he categorically said the interim government is failing to maintain neutrality in certain matters.

Contacted, BNP Standing Committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said their party leaders and workers across the country are well aware of the election officers, presiding officers, and polling agents who assisted the Awami League in rigging votes and manipulating elections over the last 15 years.

"We will provide the list of these controversial individuals to the Election Commission so that they are not involved in the next national election. If the government is serious about holding a free and fair election, the questionable people should be excluded from the voting process," he said.

Mosharraf said they are also focusing on further revitalising the BNP by forming expired committees for all units of the party and its associated bodies. "Party overhauling is a continuous process. We're forming committees and bringing in new and capable leadership."

Replying to a question, he said their party demands a prompt election as it is well prepared for the polls. "The government should hold the election as early as possible in the interest of the country and its people, as various plots are underway to destabilise the country."

The BNP leader said they are closely monitoring the activities of the government, various political parties, and student leaders. "If any unfair move is made to delay or manipulate the election, we will come up with appropriate strategies to tackle it."

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said that if any political party is formed with state patronage, the credibility of the interim government will be lost.

"It is acceptable if a new party is formed by others, especially those involved in the Anti-Discrimination movement, as we move towards democracy. But it should not be a King's party," he said.