The much-flaunted unity of various political outfits in Bangladesh, which was on full display during the ousting of democratically-elected Awami League government led by Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, seems to be fading gradually.
The violent uprising in Bangladesh saw many political forces coming together to overthrow the Awami League government leading to the formation of the interim government under the leadership of Muhammad Yunus.
However, as the country plunged into further crisis over the last seven months, several political leaders who had earlier backed Yunus are now criticising him openly, especially over the long delay that has been witnessed in holding national elections.
Slamming the current regime, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders have stated that despite talking about reforms, the interim government is showing no intent to hold elections and is instead busy fulfilling the agenda of the new National Citizen Party formed by the students, Barta24 reported.
BNP Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has said that if the Election Commission performs its duties efficiently, the general elections could be held between June and July instead of December 2025.
“If there is a delay in the election process, the people will begin to doubt the credibility of this interim government,” Rizvi while addressing a gathering in Dhaka on Friday.
“We believe that the interim government is essentially a caretaker government. Therefore, it should be able to conduct a fair election. Any delay in the election process is unacceptable,” he added.
Earlier this week, student leader Nahid Islam, who had led the violent protests against the Hasina government and has now formed the National Citizen Party, said that the interim government has been unable to fully ensure public safety, and holding a general election this year will be difficult.
Last month, Mia Golam Parwar, the Secretary General of the radical outfit Jamaat-e-Islami, reiterated his party’s demand to hold local government elections before the general elections.
On the other hand, BNP has issued a warning to the interim government not to indulge in any tampering when it comes to holding the national elections. The party claimed that any tactics to postpone national elections in the guise of reforms would lead to intensified protest movements.
Even as the major political parties in Bangladesh remain at loggerheads, the Election Commission of Bangladesh recently stated that it will not be possible to hold local elections before the national elections.
“We are also observing the law and order situation. We all know the morale of law enforcers has been low since August 5. It would not be wise to hold local elections when police morale is still low,” leading Bangladeshi newspaper ‘Daily Star’ quoted one of the country’s election commissioners as saying.
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