Following the talks with new alliance Jatiya Oikya Front ahead of the general elections, the ruling Awami League said that they are open to dialogue again but will not go beyond the Constitution.
A 21-member delegation led by Gano Forum President Dr Kamal Hossain, chief of the new political alliance, arrived held talks with the a delegation of the ruling coalition led by Awami League (AL) chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the Ganabhaban on Thursday.
Speaking to the media after the talks, AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader said that the discussions were held in a ‘conducive atmosphere’.
Responding to a query on the Oikya Front’s demands of neutral polls-time administration and dissolving parliament before the election, he said that the prime minister invited for ‘discussions in line with the Constitution.’
“We can’t go beyond the Constitution. The parliament is not dissolved for polls in any democratic country and the election is held under the incumbent government,” said Quader before adding that a polls-time administration was not discussed during the talks.
He said that they have assured of a free, fair and credible election and that the Election Commission will work independently and the government will not interfere.
“There has been significant progress,” Quader, a Cabinet member said before adding that they were open to sit for talks with Oikya Front again.
On the new coalition’s demand for scrapping the use of electronic voting machines, he said, “The prime minister has said that the Election Commission may use it on limited scale during the polls and that we support it.”
On deploying troops with magistracy power for the election, Quader said, “There have been a lot of elections in Bangladesh and only in 2001, when the caretaker government oversaw the election, army was deployed with magistracy power.”
Asked whether the issue of BNP chief Khaleda Zia’s released was raised in the talks, the Awami League leader said, “It’s a judicial issue, which cannot be an agenda for the talks ... The prime minister has said that the cases were started by the (military-backed) caretaker government.”
Quader said that the same regime filed 16 cases against Hasina and the charges were dropped only after proper investigations into those allegations.