In Bangladesh, the Jatiya Party (JP) on Thursday sharply criticised the interim government’s impartiality and called for it to be replaced by a caretaker-style administration ahead of the next general election. Addressing a public gathering at the party’s central office in Dhaka’s Kakrail area, JP Chairman Ghulam Muhammad Quader said the interim government has lost its neutrality over the past year and therefore cannot oversee the forthcoming polls in a fair manner.

 

 

The country is going through a critical period. The economy and law-and-order situation are deteriorating, and the upcoming elections cannot be credible if the government in power remains the same, Quader said, urging the government to hand over administration to a neutral, non-partisan body under which the polls would be free and fair.

JP Secretary General Shamim Haider Patwary added that the party would not participate in any election process overseen by the current setup unless reforms are implemented. The party also dismissed calls for an immediate referendum, saying any such move should only follow a properly elected parliament.

 

 

The demand for a caretaker-style government echoes similar calls by other major parties, such as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which earlier urged the interim administration to operate in a “neutral” mode, even if not formally labelled as a caretaker government.