NCP wants Salahuddin out
The National Citizen Party (NCP) has called for Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed to step down, arguing that the government’s ability to maintain law and order has come under growing scrutiny following a series of recent incidents.
NCP Convener Nahid Islam said restoring law and order would not be possible while Salahuddin remained in office, alleging that the minister had failed to fulfil his responsibilities.
“We believe he has already failed. If a person has failed, he cannot and should not remain in charge,” Nahid said at a press briefing on Monday following a meeting at the party office in the capital.
He said the home minister’s resignation would demonstrate accountability within the government and set an example for other officials.
“We have already seen a few reshuffles in the cabinet. So, now he should be removed.
An example needs to be set that if someone fails in their duties, they must step down and make way for a successor,” he said.
“This will send a message to everyone including the government officials working under him,” he added.
Nahid also accused the government of failing to control its party activists and cited the recent demolition of the Radda MCH-FP Centre in Mirpur and an attack on content creator Salman Muqtadir’s studio as examples of what he described as a deteriorating law and order situation.
He alleged that law enforcement agencies remained inactive during the incidents, raising questions about the government’s ability to ensure public safety.
“The government had promised that the law and order situation would improve after an elected government came to power. But the situation has deteriorated further,” he said.
The NCP leader also alleged that politics was influencing public recruitment, referring to candidates being excluded from the primary school teacher recruitment process following police verification.
He argued that qualified candidates should not be disqualified without specific evidence of their involvement in criminal or anti-state activities.
UNGA address
Nahid also criticised Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s recent address to the United Nations General Assembly, saying it did not adequately reflect what he described as the expectations and concerns of Bangladeshis.
According to him, the speech missed opportunities to raise issues including the country’s ongoing energy crisis, border killings, alleged push-ins from India, the Rohingya crisis and implementation of the Teesta project.
Constitutional reform
On constitutional reform, Nahid rejected the government’s initiative to form a parliamentary committee to amend the Constitution, arguing that fundamental reforms could not be achieved through the regular amendment process.
He called for the immediate convening of the Constitution Reform Council to implement the July National Charter and warned that the NCP would continue its programmes and move towards tougher action if the government failed to do so.
Nahid also voiced concern over the proposed Cyber Security Act, alleging that it could restrict freedom of expression and be used to suppress criticism of the government.
On the upcoming local government elections, he said the NCP would contest independently and support candidates committed to combating extortion, terrorism and land grabbing.
Senior party leaders Akhter Hossen, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah and Nasiruddin Patwari, among others, were present at the meeting.
