Leaders of the National Citizen Party and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami on Wednesday called on chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus to issue a constitutional order to give the July National Charter a firm legal and institutional foundation.
Speaking to reporters after separate meetings with the chief adviser at the state guest house Jamuna, the two parties said that they had conveyed their position that the note of dissent should have no functionality or effect if the charter were to be passed through a referendum.
They also stated that a constitutional order should be issued by Professor Yunus in his capacity as chief adviser, as he was regarded as holding legitimacy derived from the July uprising.
Leaders of the two parties said that President Mohammed Shahabuddin could not issue such an order, since it would have to be enacted outside the scope of the existing constitution.
The chief adviser鈥檚 press wing in a statement said that during separate meetings, NCP and Jamaat leaders discussed the implementation of the July Charter, the referendum, and the road map for the July killing trial.
The chief adviser assured both parties that the interim government would take all necessary measures to ensure a free and fair national election, the press wing statement further read.
Professor Yunus expressed his desire for the cooperation of all active political parties, including Jamaat and NCP, to make the election peaceful and celebratory.
At the meeting, the chief adviser urged the NCP to sign the July Charter, saying, 鈥楾his charter is a priceless asset for the nation; everyone鈥檚 participation in it is important.鈥�
NCP convener Nahid Islam told reporters that the discussion with the chief adviser had focused on the July charter.
He said that since the NCP had not taken part in the signing ceremony, they had iterated their position to both the government and the National Consensus Commission.
He explained that the party did not rely solely on the value of the document on paper and would agree to sign the charter only after receiving assurance regarding an effective mechanism for its implementation.
Nahid expressed concern over the neutrality and transparency of the Election Commission, alleging that it had shown favouritism towards certain parties while discriminating against others.
He raised the issue of the party鈥檚 registration and its electoral symbol, the water lily, saying that the party would not participate in the election without its symbol and calling for a clear legal and constitutional explanation for the EC鈥檚 refusal to grant it.
He also called for reform in the council of advisers, urging the chief adviser to remove any advisers accused of incompetence, corruption or political bias.
Nahid stressed that both student and non-student advisers should be assessed equally, as all represent the mass uprising rather than any particular political group.
The NCP delegation included its chief organiser for the northern region, Sarjis Alam, senior joint convener Samanta Shermeen and joint convener Khaled Saifullah.
Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Amir Syed Mohammad Abdullah Taher said that they urged the chief adviser to hold a referendum by November to provide legal backing for key reforms and expedite election-related provisions of the charter.
He also said that the chief adviser acknowledged that the reforms would be ineffective without proper implementation and promised to take necessary initiatives.
Taher highlighted issues surrounding the timing of the referendum, criticising suggestions for holding it concurrently with the national election.
He also raised concerns alleging imbalance in key institutions, saying that 65鈥�80 per cent of officers in the Election Commission, police, and prosecution were loyal to one particular political party.
Taher also told reporters that when they had urged the chief adviser to ensure a level playing field for the coming national election by reassigning officers, Professor Yunus assured them that he would do the reassigning through a lottery system.
Jamaat also warned that certain advisers were misleading the chief adviser for political ends.
According to the CA press wing, Professor Yunus told the Jamaat leaders that they could be confident in the government鈥檚 neutrality, assuring them that various steps had already been taken to ensure a free, fair and impartial election, with many more initiatives expected in the coming days.
The Jamaat delegation included its secretary general Mia Golam Parwar and joint secretaries ATM Masum and Rafiqul Islam Khan.
From the government side, law adviser Asif Nazrul, planning adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud and industries adviser Adilur Rahman Khan were present at the meeting.