Election only after reforms, trials, proper polls system

Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman yesterday said the national election can be held only after basic reforms, the trial for crimes against humanity committed in July, and the establishment of a proper election system.

Shafiqur said his Wednesday's comment that the election should be held before Ramadan was not a rigid stance.

"It may be held before [Ramadan] or after it if the conditions are met," he told reporters at a city hotel.

All political parties should cooperate with the government efforts to make reforms, he said.

"The faster they coordinate with the government, the sooner the election will be held. Unless the conditions are met, whether it's March or February, nothing will be certain…."

There should not be any "cut-off time" for the election, he said, adding that if a deadline is set then one would ask what might happen in case the deadline is missed. "We think there should be flexibility for the government."

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Jamaat for reforms before elections

There must be visible, acceptable, and basic reforms before the election, he said.

"We all have reform proposals. We have 41, the BNP has 31, some others have 57 or 58. We are not asking for all these reforms. We are focusing on just five-six basic reforms."

Parties that lose an election call the polls unfair and the ones that win term it fair, he said, adding that this culture must end.

"We need a system that no one can question easily. More dialogues and discussions among political parties are necessary in this regard."

The Jamaat is not setting any timeframe for the judiciary to complete the trials.

He said that during his visit to Europe, he met BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman.

"We went there to inquire about the health condition of the BNP chairperson. We had discussions, but it was informal," he said, adding that Khaleda Zia was mentally fine now.

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Jamaat tells US delegation it wants election before next Ramadan

"We didn't ask when Tarique will return."

During the visit, Jamaat leaders urged European countries to open embassies in Bangladesh to strengthen bilateral relations and sought collective cooperation to repatriate Rohingya refugees, he said.

He said, most of the EU countries conduct elections on proportionate representative methods and they learned how it applies and how they deal with national interest issues.