Jamaat sought 30 seats, pressured BNP over PR system, Fakhrul tells Ei Samay
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has stated that Jamaat-e-Islami requested the allocation of 30 parliamentary seats from the BNP ahead of the upcoming national elections.
He added that, after the BNP declined the proposal, Jamaat began pressuring the party by demanding elections be held under a proportional representation (PR) system.
Mirza Fakhrul made these remarks in an interview with the Bengali-language daily Ei Samay, published in West Bengal, India. The interview appeared on Monday.
When asked whether Jamaat had demanded 50 seats, the BNP Secretary General replied: “They asked for 30. We did not show enthusiasm. We discussed a much lower number, which did not satisfy them.”
The interview was conducted by journalist Anamitra Chatterjee. Addressing him, Mirza Fakhrul said: “I assure you, we will not allow Jamaat to return to power. No matter how large or influential they may appear, we have unnecessarily given them more importance than they deserve. The PR-TR demand is merely a tactic to pressure the BNP.”
He continued: “Jamaat is actively preparing for the elections. It is announcing candidate names in various constituencies. In fact, the people of this country are strongly demanding elections. The army is calling for it. Even Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser to the interim government, is demanding it.”
On Jamaat’s push for a proportional representation voting system, he said: “Jamaat will come to the polls. But elections in Bangladesh will be held under the conventional system that people understand — not PR-TR. Jamaat will participate under that system. As for the NCP, we no longer consider it a political force. It was these students who ignited the protests against Sheikh Hasina. Now, they have nothing. People do not even turn up when they call.”
Asked whether the NCP had also requested seats from the BNP, he responded: “No. The NCP never asked.” He added that Jamaat had made the request, and that the NCP’s sole objective now is to prevent the BNP from forming the government.
BNP Media Cell urges against ‘misleading’ headlines on Fakhrul interview
Shairul Kabir Khan, a member of the BNP Media Cell, has said that following the publication of Mirza Fakhrul’s interview in the Indian daily Ei Samay, several Bangladeshi media outlets have published reports with misleading headlines.
He stated that upon noticing this, he contacted the Secretary General and shared the news links. Mirza Fakhrul then clarified that he had not made any such comments attributed to him in those reports.
Shairul Kabir Khan said: “Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is a senior political leader. He does not make irrelevant or unsubstantiated remarks. Yet, misleading headlines are being created by selectively quoting parts of the interview. This is unacceptable.”
He added that, acting on instructions from the Secretary General, he is requesting all media personnel to refrain from publishing distorted headlines or reports based on fragments of the interview.