The demand for holding the next parliamentary election as soon as possible is gaining support. But the interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, is trying to push it to June next year, citing various excuses.
Without mentioning the name of the BNP, Bangladesh interim government Chief Adviser Yunus on Thursday claimed that only one party wants the parliamentary election by December.
Speaking at the Nikkei Forum 2025 in Tokyo on Thursday, Dr Yunus reiterated that he has no political ambitions and intends to transfer power to an elected government.
โI will hand over power to a political government through elections,โ he said.
Yunus stressed that only one party is demanding a December vote. โReforms will be rushed if elections are held in December,โ he cautioned. โIf we are given six more months, the reforms will be more meaningful and sustainable.โ
Nevertheless, he confirmed that preparations for holding the election are underway. โWe are committed to conducting elections. But the timing must ensure proper reform, stability, and the trust of all stakeholders,โ he added.
The comments have sparked renewed debate in Bangladesh, where opposition parties, particularly the BNP, are pressing for a December vote, while others remain concerned about the pace and depth of reforms under the interim setup.
Critics say the Jamaat-controlled Yunus-led government has been buying time to declare a roadmap for the election under the excuse of reforms and the trial of the Awami League leadership.
In fact, the government wants to cling to power to plunder public money and set their men in the administration to rig the elections because of the poor support of the Kingโs party, the Jatiya Nagorik Party (National Citizen Party-NCP), and the Jamaat at the grassroots level.
Meanwhile, the interim government banned the Awami League so that it could not take part in the elections and to draw more votes through intimidation of the leaders and activists.
The call for early elections is gaining support due to the corruption of the government, debate over the Rakhine corridor and the attempts to give Chittagong Port to foreign companies, and deterioration of law and order due to mobocracy by the government supporters.
On Thursday, BNPโs acting chairman Tarique Rahman said that the failure of the interim government to announce a specific date for the next national election, even after 10 months in power, has created political uncertainty in the country.
He believes that if the necessary reforms are implemented, an election could be held even before December.
Tarique made the remarks while addressing a discussion virtually held at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, on Thursday afternoon to mark the 44th martyrdom anniversary of party founder and former president General Ziaur Rahman.
The BNP has already warned that they will take to the streets to ensure that the elections are conducted by December.
BNP Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas on Friday said only one person in the country does not want the next national election to be held by December next.
โHe claimed that only one party (BNP) wants an election. But we say only one person doesnโt want an electionโand that person is Dr Yunus,โ he said after paying tribute at the grave of Ziaur Rahman in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.
Abbas said it is very unfortunate to see Muhammad Yunus, sitting in Japan, defaming the BNP. โHe (Yunus) did not feel even a little shame in defaming the country while sitting abroad,โ he said.
He said the BNP has always demanded that the next election be held by December. It was Prof Yunus himself who first proposed the December timeline. โLater, he shifted it to June,โ he claimed.
โIf you talk about holding the election in June, it will never happen in Bangladesh. So, if there is to be an election, it must be held by December,โ said the BNP leader.
He warned that the people of Bangladesh would compel the government to hold the election on time. โWe, the people of this country, will realise this election. Otherwise, the countryโs territorial integrity will not remain intact,โ he said.
At another programme, Abbas expressed concern that if the elections do not take place in December, it may never take place in the country again.
“Do not attempt to delay the elections through unnecessary excuses. We know very well that if elections do not take place in December, there will never be another election in this country. Bangladesh will fall under foreign control,” he said at an event held at BNP’s central office in Naya Paltan.
Leftists want polls by December
Bam Gonotantrik Jote (the Left Democratic Alliance) called on Friday to hold the national elections by December.
In a statement on Friday afternoon, the alliance said: โThe claim that no one but one party wants elections in December is far from the truth. Bam Gonotantrik Jote considers such remarks to be misleading and purposeful.โ
The statement noted that it is not just one party, but more than 50 political parties, both registered and unregistered, that want the general elections to be held in December. The alliance demanded that the necessary electoral reforms be carried out soon, the election be held within December as per the peopleโs aspiration, and the power be handed over to the elected government.
They alleged that the interim government has adopted the evil strategy of delaying the election in order to implement the agenda of American imperialism and to politically favour a new party formed with state backing.
The statement further noted that a newly formed political party, along with certain extreme communal groups and parties, including some war criminals and perpetrators of crimes against humanity from 1971, are creating anarchy in the country to foil the upcoming election.
These actions, the alliance warned, could plunge the country into a dangerously volatile situation.
The statement was jointly issued by Iqbal Kabir Zahid, central coordinator of the alliance and general secretary of the Revolutionary Communist League of Bangladesh; Shah Alam, president of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB); Ruhin Hossain, its general secretary; Bazlur Rashid Firoz, general secretary of the Socialist Party of Bangladesh (BASAD); Masud Rana, coordinator of BASAD (Marxist); Mushrefa Mishu, general secretary of the Democratic Revolutionary Party; and Abdul Ali, executive president of the Socialist Party of Bangladesh.
Gono Forum has also rejected Yunusโ claim that only one political party wants the national election to be held by December.
โThe claim is incorrect,โ the party said in a statement on Friday, adding that it has consistently called for elections by December after necessary reforms to ensure a free and fair vote.
The statement came after a meeting of the partyโs presidium council at its central office in Dhaka.
The party said recent remarks by the chief adviser and others were โvague and misleading,โ and they risked creating division among political parties.
The party also criticised the government for excluding it from recent meetings with political parties, calling the move an attempt to sideline it.
It urged the government to announce a clear election roadmap and warned against โevil forcesโ seeking to disrupt the unity formed through the July uprising.
Demand for quick election gaining support
Earlier, 52 political parties, including the BNP, said on March 30 that they want the election to be held by December.
The parties told the daily Jugantor that the election must be held by December. No concessions will be made here. For this, they want a specific roadmap for the necessary reforms and the election. Otherwise, a program to take to the streets will be given by the end of April. Informal discussions are underway with the country’s largest party, BNP, and its allies. Multiple reliable sources confirmed the matter to the Jugantor.
So far, it is not clear what kind of reforms will be made in some necessary areas and how much time is needed. In this situation, the leaders expect the government to give a roadmap specifying the necessary reforms and the timing of the elections in early April.
Due to not giving this, various new crises are being created in the country, which are likely to intensify further in the future. The common people, including political parties, are also going through uncertainty.
They think that if they could have entered the field for election work, much of the existing crisis, including various rumours, would have been resolved. But the parties are not able to enter the field like that. However, people have been waiting for a fair and acceptable election for a decade and a half.
On March 29, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said at an event that various conspiracies are afoot to postpone the elections. But no conspiracy will be allowed to succeed. It will be stopped.
An unstable environment will not be accepted in the country. Reforms cannot be carried out indefinitely. The BNP is not taking to the streets now. But if the interests of the party and the people of the country are harmed, it will take to the field again, he added.
In this regard, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, a member of the party’s Standing Committee, told the Jugantor that all political parties are now demanding an early election date. Democracy and voting rights must be restored by organising early elections. The people of Bangladesh will form the parliament and government through their elected representatives. The elected government will fulfil the hopes of the people in the coming days.
At a function at the National Press Club on March 16, Jamaat Secretary General Professor Mia Golam Parwar said that without any unnecessary delay, the reforms should be completed within the time required to complete the necessary reforms and to immediately announce the election date and roadmap.
But the Jamaat is not pushing for polls by December.
Maulana Gazi Ataur Rahman, joint secretary general and spokesperson of the Islami Andolan Bangladesh, said that it would be better for everyone if there were a specific roadmap for when the elections would be held. If it were specific, doubts would have been removed.
Shahadat Hossain Selim, spokesperson of the 12-party alliance and chairman of the Bangladesh LDP, said in March that the position of our alliance or party is for early elections. If the elections are delayed, new crises will arise. He said that if the government does not give a specific roadmap for the elections within a few days, then like in the past, we will launch a simultaneous movement with like-minded political parties to hold elections.
Saiful Haque, general secretary of the Biplobi Workersโ Party, one of the top leaders of the Ganatantra Moncho, said that he hopes that the government will take an initiative to remove the distrust and suspicion that has arisen.
He believes that the head of government will assure the parties that the elections can be held within this year after completing the talks within the government. If even then nothing is clear, it may be necessary to take to the streets to create political pressure.
Ruhin Hossain Prince, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Bangladesh, said that the chief adviser did not clarify many things about the short- and long-term reforms he talked about.
Nurul Haque, president of the Gono Odhikar Parishad, said that if the government announces a specific date for the election, it can be an honourable matter for the chief advisor.
Khaleda, Tarique want polls for restoring democracy
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Thursday said: “The journey of democracy, for which Ziaur Rahman died fighting for democracy and protecting sovereignty, is being obstructed at every step today. Soon we will see the democracy re-established in Bangladesh. This is our pledge on the anniversary of Zia’s martyrdom.โ
She made the comment as the chief guest at a discussion meeting held in the city on the occasion of the 44th death anniversary of BNP founder and former president Ziaur Rahman. She was delivering a pre-recorded video address.
Khaleda called on the BNP leaders and activists at all levels and the countrymen to move forward in an orderly manner for the restoration of democracy.
BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman, who joined the discussion meeting virtually, said that the interim government had not been able to give an election date even in the past 10 months.
“Due to this, uncertainty has been created in the country, which has caused the economy, especially investment, to not grow. Factories are about to close. Businessmen are not getting a chance to speak,” he added.
He said that the government was failing to understand the aspirations of the people. Many advisers were not aware of the sufferings of the people.
Political parties have no objections to the reforms. But everyone, including political parties, has objections to the delay, he said, adding that if the government is positive after the reforms, then the elections can be held by December.
He urged the government to immediately announce the roadmap of the elections. “There is no issue of the government losing or winning here,” he said on the election roadmap.
โIf the [interim government] has the right intention and stands for democracy, we demand that the election be held within December, after completing the proposed reforms,โ said Tarique, adding he believes that elections can be held even before December, considering the overall situation and consensus among most political parties.
The BNP leader urged the interim government to own the will of the people and immediately announce a specific date for the national election by December. โThere is nothing about winning or losing for the interim government. Rather, please help democracy to win by presenting a fair election.โ
Tarique also noted that the interim government was formed legally under a special situation after the uprising, but it is not accountable to the people under any circumstances.
He stressed the need for establishing public ownership of the state to protect it from autocracy. โThe state as well as the government can be made accountable to the people only by establishing an accountable government.โ
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