Editorial
The PM's conspiracy refrain
She cannot gain anything by confusing people
Once again, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has raised the spectre of conspiracy. When in the face of a dissenting voice she does so, people naturally take it very seriously as they should, wondering what could be the basis of her allegations against her critics.
If she has any credible evidence to back up her observations she should come out with it in public rather than create confusion and a misgiving that she is tooth and nail opposed to resolution of the caretaker dispute. Or, indeed, why should she put across a wrong signal to people that she is dangerously sidestepping a mainstream national issue that caretaker controversy has become?
Despite the virtues and lacunae, the latter demonstrated in 2007-2008, of the system this has produced three free and fair elections. Surely, the PM is perfectly entitled to her views against having an unelected interim arrangement to oversee elections indefinitely in which most people will also concur with her. And the 13th amendment whereby the system was incorporated in the constitution and which has since been replaced by the 15th amendment rescinding it, didn't envisage it as an immutable part of the constitution either.
In this context, if the Prime Minister has a right to her views, by the same token, the opposition and her critics too are entitled to their dissent and within their rights to voice it as well. Why must any person or party differing with her on an important national issue be termed 'conspirators'?
What is more repugnant to sensibilities is her repeated allegation against a perceived vested quarter's plotting 'afresh' to bring to power unelected forces like in the case of 2007-2008.
She is in power, has got the 15th amendment as a safeguard against usurpation of power that nobody contests. She has her set of talking points on her side. So too the opposition and critics insofar as the opening provided in the SC verdict for holding two consecutive elections under an interim arrangement is concerned.
Thus the PM has no reason to see conspiracy in a dissenting discourse; on the contrary, she should deem it as necessary part of a functioning democracy.
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