Abbas warns of territorial integrity risk if polls not held by Dec

Mirza Abbas, a standing committee member of the BNP, has warned that the country’s territorial integrity may be at risk if the national election is not held by December this year.

Speaking about the interim government, he said, “If this government does not want to hold the election, then it must take responsibility for the consequences. The people will compel the authorities to hold the election within December. If the election is not held by then, questions may arise about the country’s territorial integrity—it may not remain intact.”

He made these remarks while speaking to journalists on Friday (May 30), after paying tribute at the grave of BNP’s founder and former President Ziaur Rahman on the occasion of his 44th death anniversary.

Abbas asserted that the BNP has never proposed holding the election in June. “We want the election to be held within December. It wasn’t us who set the December deadline—Mr. Yunus (the Chief Adviser) himself mentioned it,” he said.

Criticising the Chief Adviser, currently staying in Tokyo, Abbas expressed disappointment: “It’s unfortunate that he is defaming the country from abroad instead of being here. He didn't even feel the slightest shame. He claims that one party wants the election, but we say one individual does not—and that individual is Dr. Yunus.”

Regarding the government’s ongoing reform initiatives, the senior BNP leader said, “This government has become so obsessed with ‘reform’ that it no longer wants elections. They are importing people from abroad for these so-called reforms. In contrast, the martyred President Ziaur Rahman introduced reforms by staying in the country, working hand in hand with the people and the soil of this land—he didn’t bring reforms from abroad.”