BNP yesterday suggested that the government defer the parliamentary elections since many hajj pilgrims will miss the polls.
The government should consider the matter seriously as about 40 to 50 thousand pilgrims will be unable to vote on December 18, BNP Joint Secretary General Nazrul Islam Khan told reporters after a closed-door meeting with party chief Khaleda Zia.
He said it is not logical to deprive a large number of pilgrims of exercising their fundamental rights. “We ask the government to consider this issue.”
The BNP spokesman said if the elections are not deferred, aspirant candidates of the upcoming parliamentary elections will not get the chance to pay their utility bills due to time constraints.
The BNP leader reiterated that the elections must be free and fair and the state of emergency has to be lifted. He also asked the authorities to meet their seven-point demand.
Party insiders, however, said the BNP-led four-party alliance wants the elections to be held two to three months later so that it can prepare better. BNP high-ups are in negotiations with the government to defer the polls, they claimed.
“Yes, we have talked with her [Khaleda Zia] about the matter [postponement of the polls],” Jamaat Assistant Secretary General Muhammad Kamaruzzaman told The Daily Star last night.
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