Election Commissioner Zabed Ali on Tuesday said the Election Commission was communicating with the main opposition BNP to ensure its participation in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
“We are communicating with all registered political parties, including the BNP, personally. We think the BNP’s response is positive,” Zabed told reporters at the EC Secretariat.
However, another election commissioner, Mohammad Abu Hafiz, denied that the commission communicated with the BNP.
“It is a matter of the political parties and they will resolve the issue of their participation in the upcoming parliamentary elections. It is not possible for the commission to convince any party to come to the polls,” Hafiz told the Dhaka Tribune.
The BNP rejected the government’s offer to join an all-party interim cabinet and declared that it will not participate in the elections unless it is held under a non-partisan government.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission has sent a letter to main opposition BNP asking it to abide by what is said in its charter about holding party council.
The EC on Tuesday sent the letter to BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, officials said.
In response to a BNP application seeking 8-months’ extension of time for party council, the EC letter states that the commission has nothing to do about any party’s timeframe for council.
They said the main opposition party was supposed to hold its council once every three years. The time for BNP for holding national council ended on December 8 last year.
Earlier, BNP elected its existing national executive committee during its last council in December 2009.
According to the Representation of the People Order, a registered political party must hold its national council as per party charter.