National Citizens Party (NCP) convener Nahid Islam said, I want to tell political parties, you should not do politics of delaying justice and reforms. Come to a consensus on justice and reforms, we will help you hold elections.
He said this at an iftar and prayer meeting with the injured soldiers and martyred family members of the July uprising organized by the NCP at Suhrawardy Udyan on Monday (March 10).
Nahid Islam said, I will tell the government, we must create a roadmap for quick justice and reforms. A clear roadmap must be announced immediately as to how long and through what process we will be able to see visible justice and reforms.
The NCP convener also said, we will take a stern answer from the advisers we have placed in power in the government, including the chief adviser, to what extent our reforms have been implemented. If political parties are in such a hurry for the elections, then they will have to answer them if they want to ask for votes. We want to maintain the consensus that has been created in Bangladesh.
Nahid Islam said, we have formed a new party by joining the ranks of the general public. Based on the aspirations of the July movement, we do not want to be dependent on anyone. That is why we want to go out on the field ourselves and implement that demand.
He said, after talking to the injured and martyred families, we have become clear about what our urgent demand is at the moment. We are all talking about justice and reform. We need to understand their desires.
The NCP convener said, many families of martyrs have filed cases in the July-August massacre. If a party comes to the elections without trying them, what hope is there that that party will not rehabilitate the Awami League later. That is why we are saying these things. And the people of the country have already decided in July-August that the Awami League cannot do politics in Bangladesh.
Commenting that we will take to the streets very soon with the demand for justice, reforms and elections to the Constituent Assembly, Nahid Islam said, none of us are against the elections. We have formed a political party ourselves to participate in the elections. In terms of elections, we are talking about the Constituent Assembly elections because this fascist constitution has been proven ineffective and unsuccessful through the July-August movement. We want to gift this nation a new constitution by recognizing the July coup. We will take to the streets very soon with the demand for justice, reforms and elections to the Constituent Assembly.
At the iftar, NCP Senior Joint Convener Tasneem Zara said, "In the past few months, I have worked and talked with many of you about medical treatment. The stories of what kind of Bangladesh you want are etched in my heart. Any common person will be tried in the fastest time, will not be subjected to harassment, this is what we say in the new Bangladesh. Such sacrifices are not just about going from one regime to another, but changing the entire regime.
At the iftar, the father of six-year-old Shaheed Jabir Ibrahim said, "I pay tribute to the family of our martyrs and the injured for bringing them together. The family of the martyrs and the injured first want justice. First there will be justice, then there will be reforms. If there is no justice and reforms, there will be another twenty-four. There will be no election in Bangladesh before the trial. The injured need to be treated more quickly." NCP Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwari said, "We have to come to a consensus on some issues. The murderer Hasina must be brought to justice immediately. We have already all become martyrs, we have no more fear. Various groups, businessmen, intellectuals who were in favor of fascism for the last 15 years must be brought to justice. The judiciary, law enforcement agencies must be brought under reform. We will take to the field demanding a new constitution, a Constituent Assembly and justice." Martyr Sajjad Hossain Sajal's mother said, "Why were our children killed like this? We do not want any elections in Bangladesh until we get this answer." Nahid, my children have taken to the streets for Sarjis, I want them to stand by us for my child's trial. Hasina always said that she lost relatives, how many people did she hang for this? So how many relatives did she kill? How many times does she need to be hanged?
Member Secretary of the NCP, Akhtar Hossain, said, Hasina, the murderer who ordered all the murders, is sitting in India and making various conspiracies against Bangladesh. We demand that she be brought back as soon as possible and made to stand trial. If she cannot be brought back to the country, she will have to be tried in the international arena. They will take the initiative to implement the reform proposals that the government has presented to the nation.
Sarjis Alam, the chief organizer of the northern region of the, said, "Those who talk about elections before the trial will be told to their faces that they are not ashamed to talk about elections without standing on the blood of martyrs and not judging them? We all want elections. But how can they talk about elections before the trial of the murderer Hasina, who has shed so much blood on her orders?" We want to spread the demand for the trial of the murderer Hasina throughout Bangladesh.
