Staff Reporter :
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) senior leader Abdul Moyeen Khan has emphasized that the interim government’s main responsibility is to restore democracy by organizing a free, fair, and credible election in the near future. He made these remarks during a discussion organized by the Jatiyatabadi Baul Dal at Shah Ali Shrine in Dhaka on the occasion of ‘National Revolution and Solidarity Day’, which commemorates the 1975 civil-military uprising.
Moyeen stressed that the people of Bangladesh have long been deprived of their fundamental democratic rights, particularly the right to vote, which has been denied to the young electorate for the past 16 years. He stated, “The young people who became eligible voters at the age of 18 have been deprived of their right to vote for over a decade and a half, and this has to end with a fair election.”
The BNP leader did not mince words in his criticism of the Awami League and its leadership. He accused Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of cowardice, stating that she fled to India in the face of the massive student-led uprising on August 5, 2024.
He suggested that Hasina’s flight mirrored the actions of past Awami League leaders, whom he claimed had similarly fled the country in 1971 to avoid confronting the Pakistani forces during the Liberation War.
Moyeen also highlighted the role of BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman in guiding the struggle to restore voting rights. He credited Rahman with providing the leadership necessary to reclaim the people’s right to vote, a right that Moyeen claimed had been systematically undermined by the ruling Awami League over the years.
“Under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975, the Awami League abolished democracy and imposed the one-party Baksal rule. Since then, they have distorted history and manipulated the curriculum, feeding a false narrative to the new generation. But despite these efforts, the youth have remained resilient and created new history in their struggle for freedom,” Moyeen added.
Moyeen further criticized the Awami League for its long-standing hold on power, accusing them of manipulating the educational system and historical narratives to maintain control over the people. However, he pointed to the July-August 2024 uprising, led by students, as proof that the youth of Bangladesh have rejected the distorted version of history promoted by the ruling party.
“The youth today are not fooled by the fabricated history of the Awami League,” Moyeen said. “They rose up in protest because they believe in the principles of democracy, justice, and fairness.”
The BNP leader also took a swipe at the Awami League’s claims of being the party of liberation, recalling the events of the 1971 Liberation War. He argued that while Major Ziaur Rahman declared the country’s independence and led the resistance against the Pakistani occupation forces, the Awami League leadership fled the country during the conflict to seek safety abroad. Moyeen likened this to Sheikh Hasina’s flight to India in August 2024, calling her escape “a cowardly act.”
“The Awami League has no valid grounds to claim to be the party of liberation. Their history is one of fleeing when the nation needed them the most,” Moyeen stated.
In his concluding remarks, Moyeen reiterated that the BNP is committed to the rule of law, truth, and justice, and vowed that the party would continue its struggle for a democratic Bangladesh. He urged the interim government to ensure that the upcoming elections are free and fair, emphasizing that only through such an election could democracy be fully restored in the country.
“The struggle for democracy continues,” Moyeen declared. “We are on the path of truth, and we will remain on this path until we achieve justice for the people of Bangladesh.”