Election will be held as per constitution, Quader tells EU delegation

The EU delegation did not discuss the issue of dialogue, caretaker government and dissolution of parliament during its meeting with the Awami League, AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader said to media after a meeting with the six-member Election Exploratory Mission of the EU at a city hotel on Saturday.

Quader said AL, during their meeting, has once again reiterated their firm stance about holding the next parliamentary election as per the provisions of the constitution.
“We want to clearly say that we are determined to hold a free and fair election. But we will not accept any violation of the constitution,” Quader told reporters.

Earlier today, BNP informed the EU team that people would not be able to exercise their voting rights if the polls were conducted under the current Awami League government.

Asked about BNP’s statement, Quader responded, “We are unaware of the discussions that took place during the meeting with BNP. We will only address the matters that were discussed during our meeting with the EU delegation. There is no need to create controversy.”

Among others, the party’s advisory council member and former ambassador Muhammad Zamir, Presidium member Muhammad Farooq Khan, Joint General Secretary Hasan Mahmud, international affairs Secretary Dr Shammi Ahmed, Office Secretary Biplab Barua, Information and Research Secretary Salim Mahmud, Executive Committee Members Tarana Halim and Prof Mohammad Ali Arafat were attending the meeting.