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Untrue, baseless

Ershad bins Ashrafs remarks on JP's staying in alliance, joining polls

Staff Correspondent
Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad yesterday strongly protested Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam's claims of the JP remaining in the AL-led grand alliance in the next parliamentary elections.
At a press conference that he arranged at his Banani office, he said he hopes the AL leader will withdraw his comments. “The remarks were untrue and baseless. We want to live with our own identity. We will not participate in the election to empower anybody,” said the JP chairman.
Ershad had met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday night at Gono Bhaban, where senior leaders of both the parties were present.
Ashraftil told reporters after the meeting that Jatiya Party, a key component of the grand alliance, will compete against the AL in the next elections if BNP boycotts the polls. If not, the alliance will remain unchanged.
As per the constitution, the polls must be held between October 25 this year and January 24 next year. The government has plans to hold the polls
in mid-January.
"During the meeting last night, there was no discussion on whether Jatiya Party will stay with the grand alliance or leave it to participate in the elections," Ershad noted.
"But I was surprised to read Ashraful's misleading comments in today's newspapers."
Speaking to reporters, he said the JP has been preparing to participate in the elections independently and has selected the candidates.
He mentioned that his party had participated in many polls as an alliance member but got nothing in return.
Describing the Sunday meeting as fruitful, he said several issues regarding the polls had been discussed. “We told
the prime minister that her last speech [televised on Friday] was not clear and there was no mention of the number of cabinet members."
He added, "I told the prime minister that the main opposition BNP would not accept her as the chief of the election-time government. But she told me she had information that BNP will contest the elections."
Asked why the JP had met the prime minister at Gono Bhaban, he said it was because Hasina had invited all political parties for dialogue during her Friday speech.
Government officials will follow her directives if Hasina becomes the chief. Therefore, Ershad observed, the opposition parties might fear this.