Awami League Election Steering Committee Co-chairman HT Imam yesterday said there was no guarantee of peaceful parliamentary elections but his party would try to hold it peacefully.
“We cannot give 100% guarantee,” he told reporters after one and a half hour-long meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad at the Election Commission secretariat. Former advisor to the prime minister Mashiur Rahman was also present at the meeting.
“Some stray incidents may happen. We will foil the opposition-sponsored non-stop blockade,” he also said.
However, former advisor to the prime minister said: “I don’t think the BNP provokes violence as their leaders and activists are seen nowhere.”
He blamed the Jamaat-Shibir for the violence. Jamaat-Shibir is resorting to violence to resist the ongoing trial of war criminals, not the polls, Imam said adding that Jamaat is trying to create instability in the country.
When asked if there is any chance for consensus he said the door is always open but the opposition must stop violent activities first. Violence and dialogue cannot go together, he added.