Thousands of activists and leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) rallied on Tuesday to demand an election after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country.
The supporters gathered in front of BNP headquarters, Bangladesh’s current shadow government, in the capital Dhaka where they chanted slogans demanding a new election.
The interim government, headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, has rolled out a number of plans to reform various sectors of the country from the Election Commission to financial institutions.
But major political parties — including the BNP, which is headed by former prime minister Khaleda Zia — want the new election sometime soon.
Mr Yunus took the helm after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country during a mass uprising last month, ending a 15-year stint in power.
The protests began in July and morphed into an anti-government movement.
Ms Hasina has been living in India since.
The country’s powerful military is playing a crucial role in running the administration, which faces a number of challenges including worker unrest in its garment industry sector, unstable law and order, and an uncertain economy.
In his recent speeches, Mr Yunus has not outlined when a new national election would be held and said they would stay in power as long as the people want them to stay.
A team of newspaper editors recently said that Mr Yunus should complete crucial reforms first and stay in power for at least two years.
The BNP initially demanded an election in three months, but later said it wants to allow the interim government time for reforms.
The country’s main Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami party, which was once officially an alliance partner under Ms Zia’s party, also wants to give the Yunus-led government more time before an election.
Tarique Rahman, heir apparent to Ms Zia and the BNP’s acting chairman, spoke online from London where he has been living in exile since 2008.
He said on Tuesday that his party supported the interim government’s plans for reforms, but such changes would only be sustained if the people have their say in the process.
He did not specify when a new election should be held but said any reforms must be endorsed in the next parliament.
“Only a free and fair election can ensure the political empowerment of the people,” he said.
He said that reforms by the Yunus-led government should focus on installing an elected parliament and a new government that would empower the people politically.
“To ensure such an election, reforms must be made in the Election Commission, public administration and security agencies, enabling them to perform effectively,” Mr Rahman said.
