Staff Reporter :
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday accused the Election Commission (EC) of deciding to use Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) at as many as 150 out of 300 parliamentary seats in the next general election at the directive of the ruling Awami League.
“The Awami League wanted EVMs in 300 constituencies, but the EC has brought it down at 150 compromising with the ruling party secretly,” Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said while addressing a press conference following a joint meeting at the party’s central office at Nayapaltan in the capital on the occasion of the party’s 44th founding anniversary.
The BNP Secretary General said,
“This decision proves that the current Election Commission is working for the Sheikh Hasina-led government. But, the BNP is not thinking about the EC. Rather, its demand is that the next general election must be held under an election-time neutral government.”
Mirza Fakhrul said, “As per their secret understanding, the EC wants to bring AL in power again through the EVM voting in the half of the total constituencies. The EC promised to reflect the AL’s wish in the next polls. But, the BNP does not allow EVM voting.”
He said that without changing the government, no election may be neutral under any election commission.
“The BNP wants to keep this government out of power during the election. They have to hand over power to an election time neutral government,” the BNP leader said.
Mirza Fakhrul said, the AL does not work what it says.
“They say one and do other things. Prime Minister said that they would not create barriers on BNP’s political programmes, but the police killed BNP’s two activists in Bhola,” Mirza Fakhrul said.
Party’s Senior Joint-General Secretary General, Joint-Secretary Generals, Conveners and Member Secretaries of Dhaka Metropolitan North and South BNP, Presidents and Conveners of the front bodies of the party, and associate organizations’, General Secretaries and Member Secretaries, were present.
