Today, 16 November (Sunday) at 11:00 AM, a meeting of the top leaders of the 8 agitating parties was held at the Al-Falah Auditorium in Moghbazar, with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami's Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman in the chair. Among others, Ameer of Islami Andolan Bangladesh Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim (Pir Shaheb, Charmonai); Ameer of Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish Maulana Mamunul Haque; Ameer of Khelafat Majlish Principal Maulana Abdul Basit Azad; Senior Nayeb-e-Ameer of Bangladesh Nezame Islam Party Maulana Abdul Majed Athari; Vice President and Spokesperson of the Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (JAGPA) Engineer Rashed Pradhan; Chairman of Bangladesh Development Party Advocate Anowar-ul-Haque Chan; and Secretary General of Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan Maulana Yusuf Sadiq Hakkani were present on the occasion.

Also present were Islami Andolan Bangladesh Senior Presidium Member Maulana Musaddiq Billah Madani and Secretary General Principal Hafiz Maulana Yunus Ahmad; Senior Nayeb-e-Ameer of Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Maulana Yusuf Ashraf and Secretary General Maulana Jalal Uddin; Joint Secretary Generals of Khelafat Majlis Muhammad Muntasir Ali and Professor Abdul Jalil; JAGPA General Secretary Professor Iqbal Hossain; Bangladesh Development Party Secretary General Nizamul Haque Nayeem; and Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan’s Maulana Muhammad Towhiduzzaman.

In addition, Bangladesh Nezam-e-Islam Party Finance Secretary Maulana Anwarul Kabir and Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan Joint Secretary Md. Ruknujjaman (Ratan), among others were present during the press meet.

The meeting held detailed discussions and analyses regarding the Honorable Chief Advisor’s speech and the prevailing situation of the country. It was decided that the matters discussed in the meeting would be presented before the nation through a press conference. Accordingly, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami's Secretary General and former MP Mia Golam Porwar presented the statement of the 8 parties before the nation through a press conference held today at 12:30 PM at the Al-Falah Auditorium in Moghbazar.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami's Assistant Secretary General Maulana Abdul Halim hosted the press conference. Speaking at the press conference, Mia Golam Porwar said, “To resolve the prevailing political crisis in order to hold a free, fair and neutral election, the 8 parties including Jamaat have placed a 5-point mass demand before the nation based on the implementation of the ‘July National Charter’. The 8 parties are continuing their movement to achieve these 5 demands.”

He further said, “The nation had high expectations regarding the Chief Advisor’s address. But the demand we made to hold a referendum before the national parliamentary election has been ignored. The announcement to hold the national parliamentary election and the referendum on the same day is not aligned with public expectations. A perception has developed among the people that the government is leaning towards one particular party by prioritizing its demand which has deepened the crisis. It also raised questions about the neutrality of the interim government.

He added, “If the government maintains neutrality, the 8 parties will continue to cooperate with them. To materialize the hopes and aspirations of the people, it is essential to hold the referendum before the national parliamentary election and also to implement the reforms of the July National Charter.”

Professor Mia Golam Porwar emphasized the need for appointing neutral officials in the administration. He said, “To level the playing field for the election, neutral officials must be appointed at all levels including DCs and SPs. If individuals loyal to a particular party are appointed within the administration, it will not be possible to hold a neutral election.”

He stated that the people of the country are in favor of a ‘Yes’ vote and reforms, while those campaigning for a ‘No’ vote do not want reforms or a neutral election. He also mentioned that the next program would be announced soon following the discussions of the liaison committee of the 8 parties.

At the end, Professor Mia Golam Porwar thanked the journalists present at the press conference and the leaders of the 8 parties.

Message sent by:

Advocate Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair

Media Coordinator, 8 Agitating Parties