Khaleda won’t make any more mistakes, hopes Ashraf

Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam hopes Khaleda Zia, who has 'budged from' her caretaker government demand, will not make ‘any mistake’ in the next general elections.

"The BNP has moved on from the caretaker issue, realising its mistake," Ashraf said, after launching a book on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on Friday in Dhaka.

“The next [general] election will be organised under the incumbent government in line with the Constitution,” he said. “It will be free, fair and impartially held.”

The BNP-led alliance had boycotted the 2014 parliamentary elections, demanding supervision by a caretaker government, leading the Awami League-led coalition to a landslide win.

Khaleda’s party and allies have been on the streets since the government revoked the caretaker government provision through a constitutional amendment in 2011.

On July 25, she said her party wanted a neutral government, or whatever it may be called, to supervise and ensure a free and fair election.

"It is not necessary that elections should be under a caretaker government. Whatever it is called, we want a neutral government to ensure free and fair elections,” Khaleda said.

Her party has been pressing for a snap election dubbing the government ‘illegal’, but the ruling party says the next election will not be held before 2019.

Ashraf reiterated his party’s stance on the snap polls issue.

He said all political parties had been urged to join the election process before the last general election.

The public administration minister hoped all the parties would contest the next balloting.

“We hope BNP chief Khaleda Zia will not make any more mistakes,” he added.