Poll date: BNP will wait until August 5, Jamaat not happy with the environment

After the meeting of Chief Advisor Dr. Muhammad Yunus and BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman in London, a joint statement came out with some kind of announcement about holding the national election in the first half of February 2026. But there has been no specific announcement from the Chief Advisor or the Commission yet. Recently, the issue of announcing a specific date for the election was also discussed in the meeting of the Chief Advisor with the political parties. Although the Chief Advisor assured about this, doubts have not been dispelled. In such an ambiguous reality, the political parties feel that the government’s steps around the election are not enough. Like-minded parties including BNP are seeking specific instructions for the election from the Chief Advisor. BNP Standing Committee Member Salahuddin Ahmed said that he will instruct the Election Commission through the appropriate process to hold the election a week before the start of Ramadan in the first half of February. That is why we are waiting. We will wait until August 5, the anniversary of the mass uprising, for that. Saiful Haque, General Secretary of the Revolutionary Workers Party, said, “Now the government should immediately give a political directive to the Election Commission, then the election-centric doubts and mistrust that are now raising various questions about the government’s intentions from many places will come to an end.” Although the government has been accused of election-centric administrative failure, Jamaat-e-Islami has avoided making a specific announcement. Jamaat’s Assistant Secretary General Hamidur Rahman Azad said, “The government has said that it will hold the best election in history. The organization of the best election must be even better. We do not think that the environment has been created in the country to hold elections. We are emphasizing on the law and order situation.” Meanwhile, political parties want to see the interim government as a caretaker government during the election period. To that end, the remaining parties, including BNP and Jamaat, are in favor of excluding controversial and unsuccessful people from the advisory council. Salauddin Ahmed said, we have said that there are some advisors in the government, if they are kept, it will lose its impartial character. He should at least remove them well in advance. Because, a new party has been formed, there are still two of their representatives there. People do not want to understand that Professor Yunus is an impartial person. Hamidur Rahman Azad said, we think that the failures should be addressed by leaving those ministries where they have succeeded, and measures should be taken to restructure them. Saiful Haque said, it is not their job to support any particular party, ideology, or section in any way or provide any indirect cooperation. The interim government of 10 to 11-12 people will actually have to do the work with the characteristics of a caretaker government. According to the political parties, there has been considerable progress in the trial of the July Charter and the genocide. Therefore, there is no obstacle in organizing the national elections on the promised date. Therefore, if a specific announcement is delayed, there will be a crisis of confidence. At the same time, if the government’s impartiality is questioned, there may be demands for the formation of a new caretaker government during the election period, according to the leaders.