Amir Khosru urges end to confrontational politics
Staff Reporter:
BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has said that Bangladesh must not return to the old pattern of confrontational politics. He urged all political parties to remain united in the struggle to restore the ownership of the country to its people. He made these remarks on Sunday afternoon while speaking at the fourth founding anniversary of the Gano Odhikar Parishad.
Amir Khosru said, “Now is not the time to take to the streets in protest. Now we must go to the people. We cannot return to confrontational or violent politics.” He added, “If we continue politics by ruining relationships among ourselves, we will again have to go back to that old culture.”
The senior BNP leader said, “In Bangladesh’s political history, there has never been a culture of parties sitting together. They wouldn’t even look at each other’s faces. But today, we are all sitting together, discussing the future ofBangladesh. We are moving forward from our respective positions with the goal of holding a fair election and restoring a democratic order in the country.”
Amir Khosru said, “The people of Bangladesh have fought for the past 16 years to reclaim their rights-and we have won that struggle. What remains now is to complete the unfinished task. It has been 14 months since Hasina fled, yet Bangladesh has not regained its democratic order. We fought for an elected parliament and government, which we still do not have.”
He further said, “That is why we have all united today and signed the National July Charter. The remaining task before us is to restore democratic order in Bangladesh through united participation in the upcoming election.”
Emphasizing tolerance as a prerequisite for building the Bangladesh of the future, Amir Khosru said, “We must show respect toward one another. Even if we disagree, we must respect others’ opinions. We need to bring such cultures into our politics.”
He said, “There is no division among us. Each party has its own philosophy, ideas, and plans-everything cannot be the same. Otherwise, we would not have been separate parties; we would have become BAKSAL (the one-party system). Therefore, from our respective positions, we will go to the people with our mandates. Through the elected parliament, change will come. Many changes will not come overnight; they will take time and must remain part of our discussions. The issues that cannot be solved immediately should remain subjects of open public dialogue.”