A meeting of the central executive committee of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami was held with party’s Acting Ameer and former MP Professor Mujibur Rahman in the chair. The meeting urged the countrymen to boycott the upcoming polls which is already marked for mutual sharing and distribution and adopted the following proposals:
“Central executive committee of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has been observing with deep concern that the incumbent Awami League government has come to the power through an election of secret pact and subsequently sent democracy into exile. They cancelled the caretaker government system in order to seize the voting rights of the people. In last 15 years, they have created an anarchic situation by conducting unprecedented torture, oppression and crackdown. On last 19th December, a court sentenced life time imprisonment against 13 Jamaat leaders of Natore district. On 21st October, 135 opposition men have been convicted in various cases. The opposition leaders and activists cannot stay in their home, move freely even they cannot join the funeral prayers and mosques to perform rituals. People of all walks including almost all the political parties, civil societies, authors, intellectuals, columnists, journalists, lawyers and others have been continuing movement for dissolving the parliament and immediate stepdown of the government in order to hold a free, fair and credible election under a caretaker government. Friendly countries and democratic worlds including USA and UK have expressed their opinions to hold an inclusive and credible election in Bangladesh. But ignoring the demands and opinions of all these sections, the government has become able to declare the schedule for next election by its submissive election commission and preparation is going on now for holding a farcical election.
Central executive committee is also observing that the government has made lots of tricks to keep the opposition out of the election. They conducted arrest drives nationwide, arrested thousands of opposition leaders and activists and closed the door for their smooth participation in election. As the government is assuming that the countrymen may boycott the upcoming election, so they have outlined a unique technique of so-called inclusive election by keeping independent and dummy candidates. By holding previous three farcical elections, the Awami League government were criticized by the quarters from home and abroad and they are experiencing the similar criticism this time as well.
By destroying the electoral management and democratic structures, the government is pushing the nation toward a one-party rule once again. Defying the government’s obstructions, the people are taking the movement toward success. Ignoring the public demand, the government is making arrangement to hold a farcical election, but the people will never let them to make it happened.
Central executive committee, under the present circumstances, urges the government to dissolve the parliament and to hold a free, fair and credible election under a caretaker government. Besides, the committee is calling upon the people to resist the upcoming farcical election. It also calls the people to keep away from casting votes and encourage others to be refrained from casting votes despite the pressure, intimidation and threats of Awami League and the administration. The people also have been requested to disconnect all types of relationship with this tyrant, oppressor and autocratic government. It finally calls the people of all walks to boycott the election, rather to resist it in order to free the nation from the clutches of autocracy and fascism.
