Ershad asks JP ministers to resign

Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad has directed his party's ministers in the all-party Cabinet and adviser to the Prime Minister to quit their posts.

He gave this directive on Tuesday, a day after announcing his party's boycott of the general elections.

He sent out the message while speaking to reporters after a meeting with Indian Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh at his residence at Banani on Wednesday.

“My final word is that I won’t go to polls. Withdraw your nomination papers if you have filed them,” said Ersahd.

“And those who are in the all-party cabinet, I am urging them to resign,” he said.

The party has four ministers and two state ministers in the cabinet led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. There is also an adviser to the Prime Minister from his party.

Ershad’s younger brother and his party’s presidium member GM Quader was Commerce Minister in Hasina’s Awami League-led Grand Alliance government.

Later, he was retained in the reconstituted ‘all-party’ cabinet formed to oversee the general election as the Commerce Minister this time too.

Ershad’s wife and party’s presidium member Raushan Ershad was made the Health and Family Welfare Affairs Minister, Anisul Islam Mahmud Water Resources Minister and Jatiya Party Secretary General ABM Ruhul Amin Howlader Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister.

Two other Jatiya Party presidium members, Md Mujibul Haque (Chunnu) and Salma Islam, were made State Minister for Youth and Sports, and Women and Children Affairs Minister respectively.

Besides, Jatiya Party presidium member Ziauddin Ahmed Bablu was made an advisor to the PM, a post that carries ministerial status.

On Wednesday, he was given the health and women affairs portfolio.

Jatiya Party candidates filed nominations on Monday, the last day to do so. Ershad filed nominations for Dhaka-17, Lalmonirhat-1 and Rangpur-3.

In a surprise move on Tuesday, he announced his boycott of the election on the ground that BNP and several other parties were not taking part and an environment conducive to polls did not exist.

After the announcement, according to officials, Raushan, Anisul Islam, Ruhul Amin Howlader and Salma did not attend office on Wednesday, but Quader and Chunnu did.