BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday said he was disappointed that Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus had not presented a roadmap to the national election in his address to the nation on Tuesday.

"We expect the interim government to implement the reforms necessary and come up with a roadmap without delay," said Fakhrul after paying homage to the grave of BNP founder president Ziaur Rahman in the capital's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar on the occasion of Independence Day.

Fakhrul also said he was disappointed that the chief adviser did not even mention "martyred president Ziaur Rahman, a Bir Uttam and a valiant freedom fighter" whose declaration of Bangladesh's independence is etched in history.

"We do not want our history distorted like it used to be under the Awami League regime."

Prof Yunus in his televised address said the next national election would be held between December this year and June 2025.

Fakhrul termed the statement "extremely vague" because December and June are six months apart. "This is not a roadmap. We have repeatedly demanded a clear timeline and election at the earliest. Without that, the current crisis will not be resolved."

The BNP is not calling for an election just to assume power, he said. "We demand the election in the interest of the nation, to protect the nation, to protect independence and sovereignty, and to establish an elected government and parliament."

BNP Standing Committee Member Mirza Abbas and other leaders of the party paid tributes to the martyrs of the Liberation War at the National Memorial in Savar.

Abbas told reporters that the Awami League's fall was not the second independence for the country.

"We have a new taste of independence by ousting the autocrat through the student-people movement in July-August. Many call it the second independence, but … there is no such thing called the second independence in Bangladesh.

"Those who say so, want to demean Independence Day; they did not play any role in the 1971 Liberation War. That is why they want to demean this day. I say, they should stop now."

OTHER PARTIES

Ruhin Hossain Prince, general secretary of the Communist Party of Bangladesh, said, "Prof Yunus was unclear about the election. It further raises concerns that the election might not be held on time."

The government can make the reforms necessary to ensure a fair electoral process and still hold the election by December, he told The Daily Star.

"If elections are not held by December, different groups may take advantage of the situation and create a crisis. That would go against the spirit of the mass uprising."

Biplobi Workers Party General Secretary Saiful Huq said after the chief adviser's speech, "the questions that existed regarding the election have become more prominent" because there was no clear indication of when the election will take place.

Zonayed Saki, chief coordinator of Gono Samhati Andolan, said a clear election roadmap was needed for political and economic stability.

However, Sarwar Tushar, joint convener of the National Citizen Party, said Prof Yunus' statement that the election would be held between December and June was itself a roadmap.

Once the July Charter is published and amendments are made to the Representation of the People Order and the Appointment of Chief Election Commission and Commissioners Act, the election timeline will become clear, he said.

Similarly, Mia Golam Parwar, secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami, said that if reforms are extensive, the implementation will take time.

"Prof Yunus has been making this statement for a long time," he added.