No politically linked person should stay in govt: Rizvi
Staff Reporter :
BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Wednesday said that once the current interim administration begins to operate in the capacity of a caretaker government, no individual with any political party affiliation should remain in office, as neutrality is the very essence of such a government.
“When the present government transitions into a caretaker administration, anyone having a political identity or affiliation must be excluded. The concept of a caretaker government is founded entirely on neutrality,” Rizvi said while addressing a press conference at the party’s Nayapaltan central office.
He asserted that there is no scope for any partisan or politically identifiable figure to be part of a non-partisan, neutral, polls-time administration. “A truly neutral caretaker government must reflect fairness not only in principle but also in composition,” Rizvi added.
Earlier, BNP Standing Committee Member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury had also urged the government to adopt a caretaker mindset and remove controversial advisers to ensure public trust in the electoral process.
Rizvi emphasized that the upcoming polls-time administration must demonstrate both neutrality and non-partisanship to restore people’s confidence in the electoral process. “Those who lost faith in the voting system over the last 16 years will start believing again only when they see that the government is acting impartially,” he said.
He warned that a genuinely free and fair election will be impossible if officials involved in “unlawful acts and abuses of power” during the past one and a half decades of autocratic rule remain in the administration. “Those who aided the fascist regime and committed illegal acts must be identified and held accountable. Many did so openly. Without their removal, a fair election cannot take place,” the BNP leader asserted.
Responding to a question about the imprisonment of 15 serving military officers in connection with two enforced disappearance cases and a July uprising killing case under the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), Rizvi said such matters should proceed strictly through the legal process.
Meanwhile, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir recently called upon the interim government to fully adopt the role and character of a caretaker administration to ensure a free, credible, and inclusive national election, expected in February.