The BNP is likely to submit the names of three former chief justices, including Syed JR Modasser Hossain and Mahmudul Amin Chowdhury, a former retired government secretary and a respected and non-partisan woman for the "search committee" to select the next Election Commission (EC), according to party insiders. “Senior party leaders, including secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, standing committee members Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain and Barrister Moudud Ahmed, are assisting the party chairperson to prepare a list of five distinguished persons for the search committee,” said a senior leader preferring anonymity.
The leaders have met several times to finalise the names and prepare a summary of their 13-point proposal on forming the EC, he said.
A party delegation, led by Khaleda Zia, will submit the list of distinguished people during their scheduled meeting with President Abdul Hamid on Sunday.
The leaders will prepare another list of persons for the posts of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners. It will be given to the President if he wants it, the leader said.
The chairperson will finalise the list and draft of the summary of the party proposal at a meeting likely to be held on Saturday, the leader added.
The BNP yesterday sent names of its 10-member delegation to Bangabhaban, the party chairperson’s media wing officer, Sayrul Kabir Khan, confirmed.
Khaleda Zia will lead the delegation during talks with President Abdul Hamid on reconstitution of the EC. The other members are secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and standing committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, Barrister Jamiruddin Sircar, Lt. Gen. (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, Abdul Moeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan, Goyeshwar Chandra Roy and Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury.
A three-member team, including the BNP's assistant office secretary, Taiful Islam Tipu, handed over the delegation list at the office of the President at around 12:30pm, Sayrul Kabir added.
Insiders said the party would request Bangabhaban to forward the names of at least three to four others to join the delegation.
Earlier, the President invited five political parties separately for dialogue on reconstitution of the EC. The BNP will first meet the President at 4:30pm on Sunday. According to the Bangabhaban schedule, the President will meet the Jatiya Party on December 20, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Krishak Sramik Janata League on December 21 and the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal on December 22.
Other registered political parties will be invited for talks in phases, according to the office of the President.
On November 19, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia placed her party's 13-point proposal on reconstitution of the EC based on consensus among the political parties having representation in Parliament since Independence. The BNP proposal provides that the President would constitute a search committee consisting of five honest, impartial, experienced, wise and widely respected persons possessing high moral standard and strong will. The BNP chairperson on Tuesday had a meeting with the party's senior leaders and some of her advisers to do the homework for the dialogue with the President.
In 2012, then President Zillur Rahman appointed the present chief election commissioner, Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad, to lead the five-member EC through a search committee after holding meetings with political parties. The tenure of the current EC ends in February. The new EC will conduct the next general election, scheduled to be held in 2019.