Left leaders on Friday urged all the left and democratic political forces to be united for an early democratic transition in Bangladesh.
They made the call at the national rally organized by the Communist Party of Bangladesh at Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital. Several thousand leaders and activists of the party from across the country joined the rally.
The party’s former president Mujahidul Islam Selim, addressing the rally, alleged that the interim government had created a serious political crisis in the country.
He said that a democratic transition in the country and resisting the interim government’s pro-American steps could be possible only through holding the next general election in February next year.
He urged all the left and democratic political forces to be united to resist the undemocratic and rightist political forces in the country.
Dhaka University emeritus professor Serajul Islam Choudhury called on all the left political forces to be united for forging a ‘Juktafront’ to establish social ownership of the country’s properties.
He said that the CPB would lead the Juktafront.
Adviser to the Socialist Party of Bangladesh, Khalequzzaman, said that an elected government was needed to save the country from the ongoing political crisis.
Former Jahangirnagar University teacher and rights activist Anu Muhammad sent a written speech in which he hoped that the left political parties would wage movements to foil the plans of the interim government to lease out the services of Chattogram and other ports to foreign companies.   Â
Bangladesh Jasod president Sharif Nurul Ambia said that the people of the country wanted democratic reforms of the constitution in the parliament under an elected government.
Addressing the rally as the chair, CPB president Sazzad Zahir Chandan said that the country’s people were eagerly waiting to cast their votes in the next general election.
So, holding the next general election in February in a free, fair and credible manner is a must, the CPB chief said.
He announced the party would besiege the Election Commission headquarters on November 24 demanding reduction of the amount of deposit money for candidates, countrywide rallies on November 16 to protest against leasing out port services to foreign companies and a women’s convention in Dhaka on November 28.
CPB general secretary Abdulllah Kafee Ratan said that the party would continue movements for democratic transition in the country.
The party’s former president Mohammad Shah Alam, former general secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince, and central leaders Ragib Ahsan Munna, Dibalok Singha, SA Rashid, and Rebeka Saren, among others, also spoke at the rally.
Following the rally, the participants brought out a procession from the venue and ended at the same place after parading different roads, including Shahbagh, Science Laboratory, and New Market areas.