BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said no dialogue or election will be fruitful while the party’s chairperson Khaleda Zia is incarcerated.
The senior politician made the statement at a human chain program in front of the Jatiya Press Club in the city on Wednesday, a day before Jatiya Oikya Front’s scheduled talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, reports UNB.
“On one hand, the government has offered to have a dialogue. On the other, they extended Khaleda Zia’s incarceration. These are conflicting moves which demonstrate the government’s insincerity in holding talks,” Fakhrul said.
“Neither dialogues, nor elections, will be fruitful with Khaleda Zia behind bars. So, we would like to call upon the prime minister to return to the path of democracy by creating a democratic atmosphere.”
The veteran BNP leader said the government must fully accept Jatiya Oikya Front’s seven-point demand in order to hold a credible and neutral election. “But first, our leader must be freed as no election will be meaningful without her presence.”
BNP formed the human chain to protest the conviction of its chairperson Khaleda Zia in the Zia Charitable Trust graft case.
Several hundred BNP leaders and activists formed the human chain in front of the Jatiya Press Club around 11am amid tight security.
They chanted various slogans demanding the immediate release of their leader Khaleda Zia.
Police cordoned off protesters to prevent unsavoury incidents.
On Monday, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi announced a three-day countrywide program, including the human chain, to protest the conviction of party chairperson Khaleda Zia.
As part of the program, the party will also observe a token hunger strike on Thursday in all metropolitan cities and district towns.
On Monday, a Dhaka court sentenced BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and three others to seven years' rigorous imprisonment each in the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.
