Bangladesh Krishok Sramik Janata League chairman Bangabir Kader Siddiqui yesterday said that the chief election commissioner (CEC) should immediately step down for saying that former president Ziaur Rahman had restored multiparty democracy in the country. “The CEC cannot really say that Ziaur Rahman had restored multiparty democracy and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had killed it. We strongly condemn such statements. If the CEC owns up to the statement, he has no moral right to remain in his post,” he said.

He said this to reporters after holding a dialogue with the Election Commission post,” he said. He said this to reporters after holding a dialogue with the Election Commission (EC), led by CEC Nurul Huda, at the Election Bhaban in the capital.

Drawing the attention of the press, Kader Siddiqui said that during the EC’s dialogue with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Sunday, the CEC, without consulting other election commissioners, had told BNP leaders that Ziaur Rahman had reinstated multiparty democracy in the country.

“If Zia indeed restored the multiparty democracy, somebody had to kill it first. We disagree with this notion. The EC is a neutral organisation. The CEC can’t say that Zia had restored democracy and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had killed it,” Kader Siddiqui said. “The CEC should resign right now for his statement,” he added.

He also said that his party had boycotted the EC’s dialogue, even though they participated in the talks. “The CEC told me that he had made the comment based on the information he gathered from the BNP’s website. But he did not mention that he was quoting the website information. It proves that it was his own statement. If the CEC does not withdraw his remark, he should resign,” said Kader Siddiqui. He alleged that the EC was not treating all political parties equally. “The EC, as a constitutional body, cannot treat a selected few unequally,” he added.

About EC’s power, Kader Siddiqui said: “It has no limit. The EC must know how to exercise the power.” The Bangladesh Krishok Sramik Janata League placed 18-point proposals before the commission including the dissolution of Parliament and formation of an impartial, non-partisan government before the national polls.

“The current Parliament, which is the harvest of a stigmatised election held on January 5, 2014, should be dissolved. Fair elections cannot be expected under the current partisan government,” he said. Among its other proposals, the party suggested delimitation based on voters rather than the population census, the curbing of money power in elections with the consensus of all political parties, the deployment of the Army 15 days before the elections, a level playing field for all, limiting the scope of persons holding the offices of the president and the prime minister to not more than two terms, and bringing the entire administration under the EC during the elections.