Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad is ready to take part in the upcoming parliamentary polls under a caretaker government as the party claims
hat the resignation letters of its seven ministers and advisers in the polls-time government were submitted yesterday.
At a press conference yesterday afternoon, Ershad said he might take part in the polls under a caretaker government “for the sake of fairness.”
It is the BNP that has waged a movement demanding restoration of the non-party caretaker government to hold the next parliamentary elections.
Ershad has always spoken against the caretaker government, saying the previous caretaker governments did him injustice.
Ershad’s statement in favour of the caretaker government system came all of a sudden, especially after his latest proposal for deferring the January 5 elections.
Ershad accused the polls-time government of creating a “smokescreen” over the resignation of his party’s ministers.
“We could not reach the prime minister for the past two days for submitting our resignation letters. The letters were finally sent by courier on Sunday, but the prime minister did not receive those,” he told reporters at a press conference at his Baridhara residence.
“Now my secretary general is going to hand over the resignations to the prime minister in person,” he said, adding: “However, we are well informed that she will not accept it.”
The former military dictator said: “Whatever the case, we are no more in the government and our ministers are not going to take part in any meeting of the cabinet.”
He also reiterated that he would not take part in the election under this government. “My party members have been ordered to withdraw their nominations by December 13.”
Later in the evening party Secretary General ABM Ruhul Amin Hawlader told reporters: “Our resignation letters have reached the prime minister. It is none of our concern whether our resignations have been accepted or not. Our duty is over.”
Party insiders, however, said Ershad could still overturn his decision and join the upcoming national elections.
“He will stage a new drama and suddenly announce that he will participate in the polls in the greater interest of the country,” said a party Presidium member on condition of anonymity.
The Jatiya Party candidates across the country did not apply for withdrawal of their candidature as of last night although a press release issued in the morning said all the candidates from the party had been asked to submit the applications to the Election Commission offices concerned.
A party source said the chairman himself had not yet submitted his nomination withdrawal application.
The last date for withdrawing candidature is December 13.
The Jatiya Party joined the “all-party” interim cabinet formed to oversee the upcoming 10th national parliament elections.
Six ministers of the 29-member polls-time cabinet were from the Jatiya Party who took oaths on November 18.
On December 3, Ershad declared that his party would not participate in the upcoming election without participations of all political parties.
