Staff Reporter :
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) President Dr. Col (retd) Oli Ahmad on Saturday urged the interim government to ban the Bangladesh Awami League, asserting that the party has no right to engage in politics due to its involvement in the massacre during the July-August protests.
“Why shouldn’t Awami League be banned? We’ve said it before, Awami League should be banned because they waged war against 18 crore people. They have no right to do politics,” he told journalists after a dialogue with Chief Adviser Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus at the state guest house Jamuna.
Oli Ahmad, who also served as Communications Minister during the BNP-Jamaat tenure, alleged that the Awami League used all available resources, including the police and administration, to maintain power.
He further claimed that the party’s survival during the protests was due to the army and some police refusing to open fire, an incident that reportedly resulted in over 1,500 deaths and many injuries.
He stated that the LDP had presented 23 proposals during the dialogue, including a call for free and fair elections, as well as addressing the rising prices of essential goods.
This marked the second round of dialogue in the current phase, which began on October 5, with the participation of the BNP, Jamaat, CPB, and several other parties. Fifteen political parties, including Gono Forum, LDP, and Bangladesh Jatiya Party (Andaleeve), joined the dialogue on Saturday.
The primary goal of the dialogue was to update political parties on the progress of reforms and to seek their input.
Meanwhile, a nine-member delegation from Gono Forum participated in a separate dialogue with Chief Adviser Dr. Yunus. The team, led by Gono Forum Emeritus President Dr. Kamal Hossain, entered Jamuna around 3:00 p.m.
Almost all political parties had the opportunity to engage in the ongoing dialogue with the Chief Adviser, except for Bangladesh Awami League and its key ally, Jatiya Party (Ershad).
Gono Forum Calls for National Unity, Fair Election Under Competent EC:
Gono Forum extended full support to the interim government for the conduct of a free and fair election. The party called for national unity to address the challenges and ensure a credible election under a strong and competent Election Commission.
“We want free, fair, and neutral elections. Today’s government is the people’s government. We will extend support to the government wholeheartedly for the sake of fair elections in the future,” said Mostafa Mohsin Montu, Chairman of the Gono Forum coordinating team, after their dialogue with Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus.
Other parties in the dialogue emphasized the need to complete reforms before holding elections and expressed their support for the interim government to ensure fairness in the upcoming elections.