Tenth parliament will be scrapped and a fresh election will be undertaken soon if the BNP can abstain from hartal-blockade and reach a consensus, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said on Thursday.
The offer came just weeks ahead of the scheduled January 5 national elections which will pave the way for the creation of the 10th parliament.
“If they [BNP] can stop hartal and blockade programmes and can reach a consensus, then the 10th parliament will be scrapped and a fresh election will be called,” she said.
Thereby, the main opposition BNP has already been ruled out from participating in the 10th national elections.
The premier made the comment during a meeting of the Awami League election steering committee held at the Ganabhaban on Thursday evening.
However, the premier also issued a strong warning that the government will be “as hard as required” if the BNP continues onward by “killing people, arson and violence.”
Earlier in the day, several ministers of the polls-time cabinet said there was no scope for the BNP to participate in the January 5 elections.
“BNP has missed the train,” Hasina said. “Talks are going on, and will go on.”
The BNP has been waging agitation programmes demanding polls be in line with their demands for a non-partisan government, that is, without the premiership of Sheikh Hasina.
But a recent amendment to the constitution scrapped the caretaker provision and said that a national election will be held under a government.
