Bangladesh's main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has decided to hold talks with other political parties over the "overall political situation" in the country. Significantly, the move came amid the ongoing exercise for the formation of a new Election Commission that will oversee the next general elections due in late 2023 or early 2024. 

President Abdul Hamid has been holding talks with political parties over the Election Commission's reconstitution. However, these talks have been boycotted by the BNP, which terms it a “pointless” exercise. 

The BNP had lost badly in the 2019 general elections, winning just seven out of the total 299 parliamentary seats. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League had scored a landslide victory, winning 288 seats in the elections that the BNP claimed were rigged by the ruling party. 

Out of power for over a decade, the BNP has been struggling to gain lost ground amid increasingly authoritative Hasina, who has cracked down hard on opposition parties in recent years. Over the past few months, the BNP has staged several protests, and the government reacted sharply. 

Until recently, it has been keeping itself completely out of discussions, being held by the president with political parties over the reconstitution of the Election Commission. However, earlier this week, the BNP hinted at a changed approach. 

“The meeting discussed the dialogue between the political parties and the president on the formation of the Election Commission. In the overall political context, a decision has been taken to exchange views with all political parties,” BNP Secretary-General Mirza Fakrul Islam was quoted as saying by Dhaka Tribune. 

The tenure of the current Election Commission will expire next month. And rules mandate the formation of the new commission prior to that. 

Furthermore, the party’s leader, former prime minister Khalida Zia, is ailing. And, the party cadre has been organizing protest rallies across several districts, demanding its leader be allowed to travel abroad for medical treatment—a demand the government hasn’t yet accepted. 

Significantly, reports suggest the ruling party is reluctant to allow Khalida Zia to travel abroad, fearing she may not return. Zia, who was convicted in 2018 in two corruption cases, and sentenced to 17 years in prison, is currently out on bail on health grounds. 

(SAM)